New Delhi: On the same day when People’s Democratic Party chief Mehbooba Mufti alleged that she had been kept once again under house arrest ahead of the DDC elections, her party’s Waheed-ur-Rehman Parra was remanded to 15 days of National Investigation Agency (NIA) custody.
Mufti has said she was trying to visit Parra’s family in the aftermath of his arrest earlier this week when authorities stopped her.
After three days of questioning by the NIA, which had summoned him a day after he had filed his nomination for the DDC polls, Parra was arrested on Wednesday.
Parra has been instrumental in the revival of the PDP in south Kashmir, especially in militancy-affected Pulwama.
After his arrest on Wednesday, the NIA produced Parra in a Delhi court on Thursday and sought a transit remand for his production before a designated court in Jammu, the officials said.
Also read: ‘Vendetta’ Cry as NIA Arrests PDP Leader Waheed Parra Days After He Filed DDC Polls Nomination
Parra was taken to Jammu and produced before a designated NIA court on Friday. The NIA has sought to link him to a case related to tainted deputy superintendent of police Davinder Singh, who was arrested earlier this year for “transporting” two hardcore Hizbul Mujahideen terrorists and one overground worker for a fee.
NIA has alleged that Parra has ‘close links’ with Irfan Shafi Mir, who was arrested along with Hizbul Mujahideen terrorist Naveed Babu, when DSP Singh was held. The NIA allegedly possesses Parra’s phone records which indicated this connection.
Mir had claimed during questioning that Parra sought his support during the 2019 Lok Sabha elections for Mehbooba Mufti, according to unnamed NIA officials quoted by PTI.
Mehbooba, upon Parra’s arrest, had said that Parra’s charges were false and that this was a measure being undertaken by the BJP-led Centre to intimidate PDP and other mainstream J&K parties.