MUZAFFARABAD: Authorities in Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) arrested on Tuesday five people associated with intra-Kashmir trade for alleged attempt to smuggle drugs to India-held Kashmir from the Chakothi-Uri crossing point.

According to retired Major Tahir Kazmi, Trade Facilitation Officer (TFO) at the Chakothi terminal, they grew suspicious during the manual scanning of a truck, and finally seized 352 packets of heroin, weighing 51.7kg.

The contraband item was concealed in two of the 22 rolls, he said.

Mr Kazmi told Dawn that after the recovery of heroin from the first roll, he instantly called his seniors, retired Brig Tahir Hameed Mallick and retired Col Shahid, Director General and Director, respectively, of Cross-LoC Travel and Trade Authority, as well as Deputy Commissioner Abdul Hameed Kiani and Senior Superintendent of Police Riaz Haider Bukhari of Jhelum valley district to the terminal and the ensuing developments took place in their presence.

More than 50kg of heroin was split in 352 packets and concealed in a truck

According to him, apparently the mercantile goods were dispatched by one Sajjad Ahmed Zargar aka Majid Kashmiri from Rawalpindi, but he did not himself accompany the vehicle to Chakothi.

At Chakothi, Chaudhry Abdul Qayyum facilitated entry of the vehicle from the checkpost to the terminal while invoice of goods was made in the name of Mohammad Mutwalli. Both are locals and associated with intra-Kashmir trade.

Israr Ahmed Meer, another local trader whose company was banned from shipping for being dormant for more than six months, facilitated scanning of that truck, Mr Kazmi said.

Police had taken all three into custody as well as the vehicle’s driver Khurshid Khan, a resident of Dhirkot in district Bagh.

Khurshid had driven the vehicle from Kohala to Chakothi while his brother Manzoor had brought it from Rawalpindi to Kohala, Mr Kazmi said, adding that Manzoor was also summoned at Chakothi for questioning and later taken into custody.

He said police were also looking for Majid Kashmiri.

Due to this episode, Mr Kazmi said, the trade activity could not take place on Tuesday.

However, he added, trucks would ferry goods to the opposite sides as per routine on Wednesday.

Trade between the divided parts of Kashmir is held every week from Tuesday to Friday while travel takes place on Mondays.

On July 21, intra-Kashmir trade suffered a blow after India alleged to have recovered 66.5kg of heroin from one of the 14 trucks from AJK.

Indian authorities seized those trucks and arrested their drivers.

The activity was suspended in the wake of the allegation and was resumed in the third week of August.

Previously, Indian authorities had confiscated two trucks from AJK and arrested their drivers on similar charges in January 2014 and February 2015.

Published in Dawn, September 20th, 2017