Srinagar: Jammu and Kashmir Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha on Friday terminated the services of two government employees for their alleged terror links.

Lone was a staunch nationalist and all his three sons are serving in the security forces

The Lieutenant Governor invoked Section 311 (2) (c) of the Constitution to remove Abdul Rehman Naika (pharmacist) and Zahir Abbas (school teacher) after investigation by law enforcement and intelligence agencies established that they were terror sympathisers.

Abdul Rehman Naika, a resident of Devsar, Kulgam was appointed as a Medical Assistant in 1992. His links with Hizbul Mujahideen emerged when police started their investigation into the killing of one Ghulam Hassan Lone of Devsar.

Lone was a staunch nationalist and all his three sons are serving in the security forces. He was killed by terrorists in August 2021. Investigation revealed that Naika was one of the plotters behind Ghulam Lone’s murder to create terror and a situation of insecurity among people in the valley.

After Ghulam Hassan Lone’s killing, the police tracked the footprints of terror sympathisers, who were providing logistical support to terrorists.

Rehman Naika and his associates were finally arrested with hand grenades and AK-47 ammunition, sources revealed.

During the interrogation, Rehman Naika confessed he had received direction from his handlers in Pakistan to carry out a terrorist attack in Kulgam by throwing grenades at security forces and politicians.

He also admitted that as a terror sympathiser, his job was to conduct reconnaissance of targets. In the killing of Ghulam Hassan Lone, Naika and his accomplices had kept a watch on the target’s movements and on the day of the killing he mounted surveillance of the area so that terrorists got a safe passage without getting identified or intercepted.

In a recent security review meeting, Lt Governor Sinha had vowed to wipe out terrorists, their supporters and those aiding them within the system.