- Three RAW agents arrested from Toba Tek Singh.
- Facilitator funding terrorists from Dubai also nabbed.
- Terrorists planned to target mosque, railway station.
LAHORE: Punjab’s Counter Terrorism Department (CTD) has foiled a major terror plot during a recent crackdown named “Operation Yalghar”, arresting six suspected terrorists working for India’s intelligence agency Research & Analysis Wing (RAW) from various districts across the province.
Speaking during a press conference in Lahore, Punjab Additional Inspector General (AIG) of Operations Shehzada Sultan — flanked by CTD’s SSP Operations Waqar Azim — said that the police officers disclosed that two operatives, Aslam and Akbar Ali, were arrested in Bahawalnagar while obtaining explosives directly from India’s Border Security Force (BSF).
The terrorists, they added, were in contact with Indian intelligence officers, identified as RAW’s Major Ravindra Rathore and Inspector Singh.
The CTD’s action reiterates Pakistan’s concerns regarding India’s subversive strategy in the region and New Delhi’s involvement in carrying out and sponsoring terrorist attacks inside Pakistan.
India has been involved in state-sponsored terrorism for the past 20 years, Director General of the Inter-Services Public Relations (DG ISPR) Lieutenant General Ahmed Sharif Chaudhry said last month during a media talk following the school bus bombing in Balochistan’s Khuzdar which resulted in the martyrdom of several children.
During their presser, the CTD officials revealed that the arrested individuals had planned to carry out attacks on a mosque and the railway station in Bahawalpur and explosives, detonators, improvised explosive devices (IEDs), safety fuses and confidential maps were recovered from the suspects, who confessed to receiving instructions for the attack.
Additionally, three other alleged RAW agents — Azam alias Jaji, Manzoor alias Qari (both from Bahawalnagar), and Amjad from Pakpattan were captured from Toba Tek Singh.
Meanwhile, Zulfiqar, a key facilitator allegedly involved in funding these activities from Dubai, was nabbed in Bahawalpur.
CTD Punjab has also intercepted audio conversations between the suspects and Indian intelligence officers and terrorists. These recordings reportedly include discussions about targeted killings and attacks on sensitive sites.
Speaking to reporters, AIG Sultan stressed that India was attempting to destabilise Pakistan through acts of terrorism, but security agencies were fully prepared to thwart such efforts.
The police officer assured that no compromise would be made on the country’s security.
The crackdown comes against a slight uptick in militant attacks in May 2025 with Data released by the Islamabad-based Pakistan Institute for Conflict and Security Studies (PICSS) reflecting a 5% increase in attacks compared to April.
According to the PICSS monthly security assessment, May recorded 85 militant attacks, a marginal rise from 81 in April.
These incidents resulted in 113 fatalities, including 52 security forces personnel, 46 civilians, 11 militants, and four members of peace committees. The month also saw 182 individuals injured, comprising 130 civilians, 47 security personnel, four militants, and one peace committee member.
Civilian injuries also witnessed a dramatic 145% increase, jumping from 53 in April to 130 in May, highlighting the growing impact of militant activities on the general populace. Conversely, injuries among security personnel decreased by 20%, falling from 59 to 47.
Combining militant attacks and security operations, the overall casualty toll for May stood at 172 including 57 security personnel, 65 militants, 46 civilians, and four peace committee members.
A total of 194 people were injured, comprising 130 civilians, 54 security personnel, nine militants, and one peace committee member. Militants also abducted at least 19 individuals during the month.
A striking aspect of the May security landscape was a 78% rise in the deaths of security personnel, contrasted with a 68% decline in militant deaths compared to April. Notably, May was the first month since October 2024 in which militant fatalities were recorded in double digits (65), a sharp drop from 203 in April.
