Enforcement Directorate claims Pakistan high commission’s hand in terror funding  

The Pakistani high commission in New Delhi.

New Delhi: The Enforcement Directorate says it has found evidence that Kashmiri separatists have received at least ₹7 crore from Pakistan to fund unrest in India. The agency has alleged that the money was disbursed by conduits and the Pakistan high commission in India.

This was revealed during attachment of a Gurgaon property of one Zahoor Ahmad Shah Watali, who is a Kashmiri businessman. While probing the allegations of money laundering by Kashmir separatist group Hurriyat Conference leaders, they found the money trail passes through Watali. The agency then attached a property belonging to Watali, in Gurgaon, worth over ₹1 crore. Following this, they conducted searches on people associated with Watali.

During one such search at the residence of one Ghulam Mohammad Bhatt, who worked as a cashier-accountant with Watali, the agency found documents that showed the involvement of the Pakistani high commission.

In a statement, the ED said: “The document shows that Zahoor Ahmad Shah Watali was receiving money from Hafiz Saeed, from the ISI, from the Pakistan high commission at New Delhi and from a source based in Dubai. Watali was remitting the same to Hurriyat leaders, separatists and stone pelters of Jammu & Kashmir.”

It also claimed about a document clearly shows that Hurriyat leaders were receiving funds from Pakistan through the officials of Pakistan high commission through Watali. The document had Watali’s signature, which the experts have verified to be authentic.

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