NIA crackdown has left separatists starving for funds: Jaitley

Union Defence Minister Arun Jaitley said on Sunday that the crackdown by the National Investigation Agency (NIA), had made it difficult for separatists to carry on their activities in the state of Jammu and Kashmir.

“Post demonetisation and NIA crackdown on separatists and foreign funding, the separatists have been starved of funds,” he said.

“Now, the fund squeeze is such that it is difficult for them (separatists) to gather 25-50 people,” the Union Defence Minister claimed.

Meanwhile, speaking in Lucknow, the Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh too praised the NIA and said that it had “a conviction rate of 95%, first for any agency in India.”

“NIA had successfully emerged as a credible agency since its inception in 2009. Fake currency plays vital role in fuelling naxalism and terrorism. NIA is curbing this and is investigating cases of terror funding too,” the Union Home Minister said.

“People involved in terror funding are scared of NIA. After it’s recent course of action, stone pelting incidents in J&K went down,” he said.

Emphasizing on finishing terror funding sources, he said, “If we plug sources of fake currency and terror funding, it will be a big blow to terrorism.”

“We will win over naxalism, terrorism and extremism. In the past three years, extremism has come down by 75 percent in the Northeast and Naxalism has come down by 35-40 percent,” Singh said.

On the occasion, Chief Minister Uttar Pradesh, Yogi Adityanath suggested holding of a meeting every six months between the NIA and state agencies.

Responding to his suggestion, Singh said, “Without better coordination, there can be no success. It’s a continuous process of sharing information.”

The Home Minister said that Lucknow office and residential complex of the NIA was the first in the country and stated that it was a “positive indication that a ‘Yogi’ (UP CM) is present in the function”.

He said the NIA was probing 165 cases and due to its “scientific probe there is an approximately 95 per cent conviction rate.”

Singh said NIA has established itself as a credible investigating agency.

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