The National Investigation Agency (NIA) is set to close one of the two cases it is conducting in the valley in connection with the alleged Pakistan funding to the separatists. The NIA has failed to find any evidence and is “as good as closed”, The Indian Express reported.

Last August, following street protests that rocked the Valley after the killing of Hizbul Mujahideen commander Burhan Wani, the NIA initiated a preliminary enquiry to probe funds stoking unrest in the Valley. It was suspected that these funds were coming from across the border and were being channelised to stone-pelters through suspect bank accounts linked to militants or separatists in the Valley.

A year down the line, the agency has found that all transactions through these bank accounts were legitimate and not connected in any way to terror funding.

“No evidence of terror funding or financial aid to stone-pelters has been found in that case. All bank accounts that were brought under the scanner have been found to have had legitimate business transactions. That case is as good as closed,” a senior NIA officer was quoted by the newspaper.

In last year’s case, the NIA probed transactions amounting to approximately Rs 38 crore from 17 accounts in four banks of south Kashmir for links to militants or separatist groups.

The probe was based on an input provided by the Army that some bank accounts had suspicious transactions and withdrawals that coincided with incidents of stone-pelting in the Valley. A majority of these accounts were held by small businessmen in areas such as Kupwara and Pulwama in south Kashmir.

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