Manoj Sinha terminates two J&K govt employees with alleged terror links

J&K Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha terminated two government employees with alleged terror links under his 'zero-tolerance' policy. One from the Education Dept was a Hizb-Ul-Mujahideen operative; the other was an LeT associate. Over 90 have been sacked.

Jammu and Kashmir Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha on Wednesday terminated the services of two government employees as part of his "zero-tolerance to terror" policy, sources said. These dismissals were executed under Article 311(2)(c) of the Constitution of India and were a part of the ongoing drive to root out terrorists embedded in the government machinery.

Operative in Education Department

According to sources, one of the alleged terrorists was a Class-IV employee of the Education Department in Ramban. However, he was operating for the terror outfit Hizb Ul Mujahideen and used his government position as a cover to revive terrorism and build a larger terrorist network in Ramban and the surrounding areas.

Sources said the accused first came under the watch of security and intelligence agencies in 2011, when a hawala network tasked with distributing money to families of killed terrorists was exposed. Later, fresh inputs revealed that terror funds were being channelled to revive and sustain the Hizb-Ul-Mujahideen terrorist network in Jammu Division.

"We didn't know that he was working for Hizb-Ul-Mujahideen until April 2011. His name came out in April 2011, during the interrogation of a Hizb-Ul-Mujahideen terrorist, who was nabbed by J&K Police for distributing terror money to seven terrorist families. Jammu and Kashmir Police picked him up and put him behind bars, but later in October 2011, he managed bail and continued his terror activities," sources revealed.

His activities were monitored, and a charge sheet was filed against him in a special court in 2022. It was learnt that the terror accused was making contacts with local terrorist networks for furthering terrorist activities and strengthening the cadres of Hizb-Ul-Mujahideen. A detailed investigation in his case and huge inputs gathered by the agencies revealed that he continued to act as a facilitator and conduit of terrorists.

"The presence of a terrorist within an educational environment is a matter of grave concern. Moreover, he was part of the government machinery, an institution tasked with serving the public and responsibly using taxpayers' money. While drawing a salary from the government exchequer, he was in fact working for terrorists- an inconceivable betrayal in any civilised society," sources further added.

Associate in Rural Development Department

Another government employee sacked by Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha was working as a Class-IV employee in the Rural Development Department. His appointment was made on compassionate grounds following the death of his father, who was working as a plantation watcher in the Rural Development Department.

Investigation revealed that he was working as a terror associate of LeT and he was providing logistical and operational support to LeT terrorists operating in Bandipora. Sources said he was tasked by a Pakistan-based terror outfit to provide safe houses to terrorists, facilitate their movement and transportation, share sensitive information related to the movement and deployment of police and security forces and raising OGW network of LeT in the area.

"In April 2025, he and one of his terror associates were apprehended during a routine check at a joint Naka. 01 AK-56 rifle, grenade and other ammunition were recovered from him," sources said.

The investigation further revealed that he had evolved from a mere facilitator into an active operational terror associate, and that his network was plotting an attack on security forces.

"Appointed on compassionate grounds after his father fell in government service, he repaid that mercy with treachery. His descent into terrorism is not merely a crime- it is a cold-blooded betrayal of the very state that sheltered him and sustained his family," sources said.

More than 90 government employees with terror links have been sacked by LG Sinha. (ANI)

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