Doda: With security forces hot on his trail, Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM) commander and Pakistani terrorist Saifullah is believed to have shaved off his beard and tonsured his head, while moving around the Doda district of Jammu and Kashmir.
He is also suspected of donning a burqa to evade detection.
“We have inputs that he has acquired women’s clothing and burqas, planning to disguise himself for escape,” Sandeep Mehta, senior superintendent of police, Doda, said, as quoted by NDTV.
The Doda Police have released dual posters of the terrorist, with a bearded image and one without it. Authorities have claimed that Saifullah’s most sinister tactic is posing as a spiritual guru, exploiting rural trust to secure a lifeline.
“He has acquired the status of a revered spiritual figure for some locals. He is leveraging this image to secure logistical support,” a senior official said.
For two months now, security forces have braved harsh conditions, scanning every inch of Kishtwar and Doda heights to nab Saifullah and his associates.
One of his group Adil, who had been operating alongside him for two years, was killed in an encounter with security forces in the Chhatroo area of Kishtwar. The Army also lost a soldier during one encounter.
On January 19, security forces busted Saifullah’s hideout and recovered stored rations meant to sustain the whole group through winter.
This hideout, perched at a height of 12,000 feet was a fortified Kargil style bunker that was carved in the rugged and frozen mountains of Jammu and Kashmir’s Kishtwar, the police said. This was where Saifullah and his accomplices his for months.
Saifullah’s escape back to Pakistan has been effectively cut-off by the security forces and he is constantly in search for safer ground. He rarely ventures out after reaching a safe shelter.
