The Jammu and Kashmir Ghaznavi Force (JKGF), which has been formed with cadres from terrorist organisations such as the Lashkar-e-Taiba and Jaish-e-Mohammed, was on Friday banned under the stringent anti-terror law, officials said here.

In a separate notification, a resident of Punjab, Harwinder Singh Sandhu alias Rinda, was declared a terrorist by the Ministry of Home Affairs, they said.

According to a notification issued by the ministry, the JKGF has been involved in infiltration bids, narcotics and weapon smuggling, terror attacks in the Union territory, and threats to security forces.

The JKGF draws its cadres from various proscribed terrorist organisations, such as the Lashker-e-Taiba, Jaish-e-Mohammed, Tehreek-ul-Mujahideen, Harkat-ul-Jehad-e-Islami and others, the home ministry said.

Sandhu alias Rinda, who hails from Punjab but is currently based in Lahore and associated with the banned group Babbar Khalsa International (BKI), has been declared a terrorist.

Sandhu is alleged to be one of the masterminds behind an attack on the intelligence headquarters of the Punjab Police in 2021.

A Red Corner Notice was also issued against him by the Interpol.

The home ministry said the JKGF has been using various social media platforms to incite the people of Jammu and Kashmir to join terrorist outfits against India.

The terror group is detrimental to national security and the sovereignty of India and is involved in terrorism. It has committed and participated in various acts of terrorism in the country, the ministry said.

In exercise of powers conferred by the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, the JKGF has been designated as a terror group, the notification stated.

The ban will be effective to JKGF and all its manifestations and front organisations.

The JKGF is the 43rd group to be declared outlawed under the anti-terror law.

The home ministry further said Harwinder Singh Sandhu has direct links with Pakistan-based terrorist groups and is also involved in cross-border smuggling of arms, ammunition and militant hardware, besides drugs on a large scale.

He was involved in various criminal offences like murder, attempt to murder, contract killing, robbery and extortion in Punjab, Maharashtra, Haryana, West Bengal, Himachal Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh, the ministry said.

Singh is now the 54th individual to be designated as a terrorist by the government.

Last month, the central government had banned two proxy organisations of the Lashkar-e-Taiba and the Jaish-e-Mohammad and declared four individuals as terrorists.

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