Missing J&K cop resurfaces online, rumoured to have joined LeT
Ishfaq Ahmed, a policeman posted in Jammu and Kashmir who had recently gone missing, has now resurfaced - online. A photo of him with an AK-47 has gone viral on social media with many believing that he has joined the Lashkar-e-Taiba. If he has, he wouldn't be the first. In the recent past, eight cops have deserted the police force to become Kashmiri militants.
Number of Kashmiri youths joining militancy on the rise
Since 2014, the number of Kashmiri young men joining militancy has been on the rise. It was 53 in 2014, 66 in 2015 and 88 in 2016, according to data compiled by security agencies. Their number for up till July this year was 70.
Ishfaq had gone on leave, never returned
Ishfaq was posted at the Police Training Centre in J&K's Kathua district. He had gone on leave and was to return on October 23 but didn't. The PTC administration might take a legal action against him. However, it's still not clear if he has joined the LeT as is being believed. Ishfaq hailed from J&K's Shopian district. He had joined the police in 2012.
Pulwama-Shopian-Kulgam region has become a hub of homegrown militants
According to officials, the new recruits are mostly natives of Pulwama, Shopian and Kulgam districts. The region has now become a hotbed of tech-savvy militants. Because of its strategic location, Pulwama has emerged as the terror epicentre connecting these districts with Srinagar, Anantnag and Budgam.
