Srinagar, April 1: The car blast, which took place on the Jammu-Srinagar highway in Jammu and Kashmir's Banihal area last Saturday, was an attempt to carry out a Pulwama-type attack on the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF), according to suicide note recovered by the police. The suicide note was reportedly left by a Hizbul Mujahideen terrorist who was supposed to die in the Banihal car blast but changed his mind at the last minute and abandoned the vehicle before the explosion.
The terrorist has been identified as Owais Amin. In his suicide note, Owais mentioned the youngest pellet gun victim, 18-month-old Hibba Nisar and Kashmiri teacher Rizwan Asad Pandith who died in police custody on March 19. He said he was strapping himself with explosives to avenge the “atrocities” committed by “Baharat” against the people of Kashmir, reports TOI.
"I want to know from the sensible Indian people as to why Rizwan Assad Pandit was martyred. He had neither touched a gun nor gone to across the border. He was an innocent Kashmiri youth. This is why I preferred death to life and I hold it as my good luck," the suicide note reads. "I have decided to avenge these atrocities by strapping myself with explosives and blowing up ‘Indians’ responsible for the same," Owais said. Jammu And Kashmir: Four Terrorists of Lashkar-e-Taiba Gunned Down in Pulwama Encounter.
The suicide note confirms that Owais's plan was to carry out a Pulwama-type attack on a 46-vehicle CRPF convoy passing by Banihal on the Jammu-Srinagar highway. Jammu and Kashmir Police and the National Investigation Agency (NIA) are conducting a probe into the car blast. Owais is absconding. While there was no loss of life, a CRPF vehicle was slightly damaged in the explosion.
"The car caught fire and slight damage was caused to the rear of one of the CRPF vehicles. No injuries were caused to CRPF personnel. The incident is being investigated," the CRPF said in a statement. On February 14, a suicide bomber devastated a CRPF vehicle at Pulwama, killing 40 troopers. The attack was claimed by the Pakistan-based Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM) terrorist group.
(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Apr 01, 2019 12:28 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).