The Union government on Saturday designated 23 Pakistan-based individuals as terrorists under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA), taking the total number of individuals listed in the Fourth Schedule of the law to 80. According to a government order, the newly designated terrorists were allegedly involved in major attacks on security forces, drone-based arms smuggling, and the indoctrination and recruitment of youth through social media.
The latest additions include individuals accused of participating in terror attacks in Jammu and Kashmir and operating from Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Jammu and Kashmir.
In a post on X, Union Home Minister Amit Shah said the listed individuals had played roles in anti-India activities, including carrying out terror attacks, promoting terrorism, trafficking arms, infiltrating across the border, facilitating terrorist organisations, raising funds and recruiting terrorists.
"Pursuing Modi Ji's vision of zero tolerance against terror, the MHA today declared 23 dreaded terror functionaries as terrorists under the provisions of the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act...
"Out of the 23 terrorists announced today, 17 are Pakistani nationals and 6 are Indian nationals. However, all of them at present operate terrorist activities from Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Jammu and Kashmir. The Modi govt is determined to rip apart every terror module to shield India and its people," he said.
The UAPA authorises the Central government to designate an individual as a terrorist if it believes that person is involved in terrorism. While the First Schedule identifies terrorist organisations such as Jaish-e-Mohammad (JeM) and Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT), the Fourth Schedule is meant for listing individual terrorists.
The inclusion of these names enables agencies such as the National Investigation Agency (NIA) to freeze financial assets, prohibit arms transactions and seize properties linked to the designated individuals.
Among those named are 52-year-old Abdul Rauf, who allegedly operates from Lahore under the direct command of LeT founder Hafiz Saeed, and 54-year-old Rana Iftikhar, who is accused of motivating youths to participate in jihadi activities. Both have been designated as terrorists under the UAPA.
Also included are Hafiz Khalid Waleed, Maulana Saifullah Khalid and Molana Yousaf Taibi, all of whom are associated with Saeed's Jamaat-ud-Dawa (JuD) network.
Ashfaq Ahmad, 52, has been designated for allegedly providing technical assistance and collecting funds for JeM operations from Bahawalpur.
Separate notifications issued on Saturday by Joint Secretary Rakesh Rathi designated 52-year-old Mufti Muhammad Asghar Khan, identified as a JeM launching commander based in Abbaspur. The notification describes him as one of the masterminds behind the November 29, 2016, attack on the Indian Army camp in Nagrota, Jammu.
The government also designated two other JeM operatives linked to the Nagrota attack — 56-year-old Hafiz Abdul Shakoor from Kotli and 47-year-old Abdullah Jehadi, who is accused of facilitating the infiltration of cadres from the Neelum district.
Also added to the list are JeM operatives 41-year-old Masood Ilyas Kashmiri from Poonch in Pakistan-occupied Jammu and Kashmir and 38-year-old Mohammad Mussadiq from Shakargarh in Pakistan's Narowal district. Authorities allege both were involved in the April 22, 2022, attack on security forces in Sunjwan, Jammu.
According to the order, Mussadiq is also accused of heading a team of "cyber players" to recruit youth through various social media platforms and serving as a principal handler for JeM infiltration into India.
The list further includes 40-year-old Mohammed Shaheed Faisal, originally from Bangalore and now based in Rawalpindi. The order alleges that Faisal has links with LeT, JeM, Al-Qaeda and ISIS modules, and accuses him of recruiting youth through social media, arranging weapons training in Pakistan and raising funds for terrorist activities.
The order further states, "With the intent of carrying out terrorist activities in the country, he has remained involved in the delivery of weapons and ammunition and conspiracies related to several terrorist incidents," the order notified on Saturday morning said.
Imdad Ullah Makki, identified as the Amir of several JeM factions and a coordinator of multiple terrorist activities, has also been designated as a terrorist.
Nazir Ahmed Gujjar from Islaamabad and Waseem Noor Jat from Jhang in Punjab have also been listed for allegedly supplying arms and ammunition into Jammu and Kashmir using drones and for indoctrinating youth.
The government noted that the UAPA was amended in 2019 to permit the designation of individual terrorists, whereas earlier only organisations could be notified as terrorist entities.
The newly designated LeT-linked individuals also include Firdous Ahmad Bhat, Haroon Rashid Ganai, Bilal Ahmad Mir, Abid Quyoom Lone, Nazir Ahmed Gujjar, Abdul Rauf, Ashfaq Ahmad, Hafiz Khalid Waleed, Maulana Saifullah Khalid, Mohammad Yaqoob, Molana Yousaf Taibi, Owais Farooz, Qari Yaqub Sheikh and Rana Iftikhar.
"Formally designating these individuals as terrorists will not only help dismantle the terror ecosystem by curbing their financial networks, movements, recruitment capabilities, and terror-linked activities, but will also send a strong message of deterrence against anti-national and terrorist acts.
"Furthermore, it will enhance the capacity of security and law enforcement agencies to initiate coordinated legal, investigative, and preventive actions at both national and international levels," the home ministry said in a statement.
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