Jammu and Kashmir police on Saturday attached a property worth ₹2 crore belonging to designated terrorist Sajad Ahmad Sheikh alias Sajad Gul, the founding chief of The Resistance Front (TRF), who is reportedly hiding in Pakistan.
The development comes days after the police attached the house-cum-office of Hurriyat hawk Syed Ali Shah Geelani, marking a renewed crackdown on high-profile separatists or militants by government agencies.
The TRF is believed to be responsible for orchestrating several attacks after the 2019 scrapping of the special status, including the Pahalgam massacre on April 22.
The police said the ownership of the property, built on 15 marlas of land, is in the name of Gul’s father, Ghulam Mohammad Sheikh, according to the revenue records. However investigation revealed that Gul is an active stakeholder, the police added.
The house, located at Rose Avenue, HMT, has been attached under the provisions of the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act.
The police said the attachment was carried out in connection with FIR No. 235/2022 registered at the Parimpora police station under Sections 13, 38 and 20 of the UAPA, and Sections 2/3 of the Enemy Agents Ordinance Act. The proceedings were initiated under Section 25 of the UAPA, which empowers authorities to attach properties used or intended to be used for terrorist activities.
The attachment was done in the presence of the executive magistrate.
According to the police, Gul has been involved in militant activities, spreading anti-national propaganda and inciting disaffection against the government through online and social media platforms.
“This attachment forms part of the ongoing strategy of Srinagar Police to disrupt the financial, logistical, and operational networks of terrorism, including their cross-border sponsors and sympathisers. The action sends a clear message that individuals or entities aiding terrorism will face strict legal consequences, including the forfeiture of illegally acquired assets,” a police statement said.
While most of the active TRF members are believed to be non-locals, officials claim the group was founded by two Kashmiris — Gul and Abbas Sheikh, a tailor from South Kashmir’s Anantnag district.
Gul was designated a terrorist in 2023. Sheikh and his associate, Saqib Dar, were killed in a purported gunfight with the security forces in Srinagar in 2021.