India to seek UN ban for 12 terrorists including JeM chief Abdul Rauf Ashgar

NEW DELHI: India will soon approach the UN with a list of 12 names, including Jaish-e-Mohammad (JeM) commander Abdul Rauf Ashgar, urging the global body to ban him and other fugitives belonging to Indian Mujahideen (IM) and Lashkar-e-Toiba (LeT) for their involvement in past terror attacks.

Ashgar, 42, is the younger brother of JeM chief Maulana Masood Azhar, who is suspected to be the mastermind behind the recent attack at a Pathankot air base. A ban by the UN Security Council resolution will restrict the movement of suspects as it imposes a travel ban, assets freeze, financial penalties etc, said an official.

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Home minister Rajnath Singh will give his final approval to the 12-name list that will then be communicated to the UN through the external affairs ministry, the official said. The others who will be named include IM commander Riyaz Bhatkal, Ansar-ut-Tawahid chief AS Armar, his brother Mohammad Shafi Armar, and Azamgarh resident Mohammad Sajid.

According to intelligence agencies, Sultan and Sajid have reportedly died fighting in Syria along with the ISIS. However, a red corner notice by the Interpol against the two is still in existence.

Officials said the name of Rauf is being recommended for his role in the hijacking of Indian Airlines IC 814 in 1999 that had led to the then NDA government in India freeing Azhar, who is believed to have lived in Pakistan since then and perpetrated terrorism against India. Once issued by the UN, these sanctions will be part of the red corner notices against the 12 fugitives. Government officials also clarified that the names of these terrorists are not being recommended in the wake of the Pathankot attack.

“We have been pursuing the matter with the UN for almost a year to put these names under the sanctions lists. The matter was delayed as the information had to be compiled in a particular format,” said an official who was part of the exercise.