Jaipur nikah, Kashmir trail: How LeT’s ‘Khargosh’ used fake passport to flee India | India News

A top operative Lashkar-e-TaibaUmar Haris alias “Khargosh” (Rabbit), whose roots are in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, is now believed to be in Saudi Arabia after fleeing India using a fake passport, officials told PTI on Sunday. The document was issued under the name “Sajjad”, posing as a resident of Rajasthan to Harris. The Srinagar police, which is leading the investigation into the LeT terror module, which has shared details with central agencies, has raised concerns about procedural flaws that enable such abuses, officials said.The case registered by the Jammu and Kashmir Police earlier this month is likely to be handed over National Investigation Agency (NIA). Meanwhile, key details have already been shared with the state police force to take swift action and fill critical gaps, officials told PTI.Contrary to earlier reports linking Umar Harris to Karachi, investigators have now established that he hails from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan.He is said to have joined Lashkar-e-Taiba to avoid police action when multiple arson cases were pending against him in Karachi before being pushed by the terror outfit to Jammu and Kashmir in 2012.Harris earned the nickname “Rabbit” for his ability to move quickly and avoid security dragnets. According to investigators, after infiltrating the Kashmir Valley from the north, he lived across Bandipora and Srinagar, eventually marrying the daughter of a LeT Over Ground Worker (OGW). Nikah was conducted in Jaipur under his assumed identity “Sajjad”.Officials said the marriage documents later became crucial to support her application for an Indian passport, a revelation that raised serious questions about the flaws in the verification system. The unveiling of the inter-state module by the Srinagar police exposed procedural loopholes, particularly how passports could be issued in Rajasthan despite established checks. Also read: Not cards, codes, identity QR in terror-scarred PahelgamInvestigators believe Harris fled to Indonesia and later traveled to Saudi Arabia between 2024 and 2025 using another forged travel document. Efforts are underway to secure his deportation through diplomatic channels.New details emerged after what Srinagar police officials described as a “deep-rooted” interstate LeT module, arresting five operators, including Pakistani terrorist Abdullah alias Abu Hurera, who had been on the run for 16 years and based outside Jammu and Kashmir.Abdullah’s arrest along with another Pakistani national, Usman alias Khubaib, is a major breakthrough, coming six months after the busting of a “white-collar” terrorist cell linked to Faridabad’s Al Falah University.During interrogation, Abdullah revealed details of his and Harris’ movements across India, particularly in Rajasthan, Haryana and Punjab. This included a Jaipur wedding, after which the bride’s father was detained for allegedly being aware of Harris’ real identity, officials said.The operation, which began on March 31 and was closely monitored by DGP Nalin Prabhat, also shed light on LeT’s financing and financial networks. Investigators say the gang relied heavily on fake identities and documents to build a multi-state network.Three residents of Srinagar, Mohammad Naqib Bhat, Adil Rashid Bhat and Ghulam Mohammad Mir alias Mama, were among those arrested for allegedly providing shelter, food and logistical support. The network began to unravel with the arrest of Naqeeb Bhatt from Pandach area, where the police recovered a pistol and incriminating material.During questioning, Bhatt admitted his links with LeT, saying he procured arms from another Jakora associate Adil Rashid and helped support foreign terrorists. His revelations led the police to Mir and Rashid Bhatt, both active operatives, and helped uncover multiple hideouts in the forests around Srinagar.Two officers Pakistani terrorists Classified as an ‘A+’ militant and infiltrated India about 16 years ago, was active across the Kashmir Valley and “commanded” about 40 foreign terrorists over the years, most of whom have since been neutralized.The bust comes nearly six months after the release of the “Al Falah Module” in November 2025, when a Srinagar police investigation uncovered a network of radicalized professionals, many of whom were doctors.One of the accused, Umar-un Nabi of Al Falah University, was behind the explosive-laden car detonation outside the Red Fort on November 10, killing more than a dozen people. Officials said he had earlier made unsuccessful attempts to join the terror group in 2016 and 2018.