NEW DELHI - Pakistan’s Joint Investigation Team (JIT), which was here to probe the Pathankot terror strike, wrapped up its investigations on Thursday. The team will leave for Pakistan today (Friday).
The JIT on Thursday completed recording statements of the witnesses and was handed over some more documents that included DNA reports of the four terrorists killed in the 80-hour encounter.
According to Indian media, the joint investigating team (JIT) of Pakistan, which is headed by additional Inspector General of Police of the Counter Terrorism Department Muhammad Tahir Rai and includes ISI’s Lt-Col Tanvir Ahmed, began their day by recording the statements of witnesses in the case.
The JIT recorded the statements of witnesses through the National Investigation Agency (NIA).
They were not allowed to directly question the witnesses, as per protocol, said an NIA official.
The team questioned 16 witnesses, Punjab SP Salwinder Singh, his jeweller friend Rajesh Verma and cook Madan Gopal. The three were allegedly kidnapped by the Pathankot attack perpetrators on the night of December 31 and January 1.
The terrorists had allegedly dumped Verma after slitting his throat and continued their journey with Singh and Gopal before jettisoning them a few kilometres away from the Pathankot airbase.
The terrorists entered the air base and mounted the brazen assault on the night of January 1. In the fierce encounter that ensued, seven security personnel besides four terrorists were killed.
The JIT had asked NIA to hand over swabs of four terrorists identified as Nasir Hussain, Abu Bakar, Umar Farooq and Abdul Qayum. However, the Indian anti-terror probe agency handed over to the visitors the DNA reports of the terrorists and asked them to match those with their family members, NIA sources said.
“Talks are at a conclusive stage and hopefully by tomorrow afternoon everything will be over,” director general of NIA, Sharad Kumar said in New Delhi.
The JIT also spoke to the caretaker of a shrine visited by Singh before he was kidnapped and policemen and other witnesses who spotted the abandoned hijacked vehicle.
Statements of a couple of doctors who conducted the postmortem were also recorded.