SRINAGAR: A local court in Moradabad (UP) has sentenced fugitive Hizbul Mujahideen operative Ulfat Hussain alias Mohammad Saiful Islam to 10 years of rigorous imprisonment for his involvement in terror-related activities, bringing closure to a case that had remained dormant for nearly two decades after the accused went underground., reports appearing in media said.
Additional District and Sessions Judge Chhaya Sharma pronounced the verdict on Monday, imposing a fine of Rs 48,000 on the accused, Additional District Government Counsel (ADGC) Suresh Singh said on Tuesday.
Hussain, originally from Fazalabad in the Surankote area of Poonch district in Jammu and Kashmir, had been absconding since 2008 after securing bail. He was first arrested in July 2001 in Moradabad in a sensational case involving the seizure of a large cache of arms and explosives, including an AK-47 rifle, an AK-56, two pistols, 12 hand grenades, 39 timers, 50 detonators, 29 kg of explosives, 560 cartridges, and eight magazines.
Booked under Sections 3, 4 and 5 of the Prevention of Terrorism Act (POTA), Section 25 of the Arms Act, Section 7 of the Criminal Law Amendment (CLA) Act and attempted murder charges registered at Katghar police station, Hussain remained untraceable for over 18 years.
Authorities had issued a permanent warrant against him as early as January 7, 2015. The court reaffirmed this on March 5, 2025, and a reward of Rs 25,000 was announced for information leading to his arrest.
Acting on intelligence provided by the Uttar Pradesh Anti-Terrorism Squad’s (ATS) Saharanpur unit, a joint operation was carried out on March 7, 2025, in Jammu and Kashmir. Hussain was finally captured the following day in Poonch district by the UP ATS and Katghar Police and was transferred to Moradabad jail.
According to Additional DG, ATS, Nilabja Chaudhary, Hussain had undergone terrorist training in Pakistan-occupied Jammu and Kashmir (PoK) between 1999 and 2000, and was believed to be plotting a major attack after returning to Moradabad in 2001. His sudden disappearance after securing bail in 2008 had led to years of manhunt and judicial backlog.
Following his arrest, Hussain has been under interrogation by the ATS for potential leads on dormant terror modules and operatives linked to banned Hizbul Mujahideen. -(KL)
