INTRODUCTION
The National Investigation Agency confirmed through official statements on April 23, 2025 that The Resistance Front (TRF) under Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, 1967 performed the Pahalgam Jammu Kashmir terror attack. Proscribed outfits remain an ongoing threat because this incident brought renewed attention to their illegal operations through false names. The legal framework and operational difficulties involved with fighting hybrid terrorism become clear in the Kashmir region. The National Investigation Agency (NIA) has taken charge of the investigation and multiple provisions from UAPA, IPC, Arms Act, and IT Act will be applied to the case.
BACKGROUND
The Resistance Front (TRF) emerged during late 2019 as Pakistan-based terror organizations tried to establish new identities after the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) started its monitoring operation. Indian intelligence agencies have exposed TRF’s deceptive claim of being a Kashmiri grassroots organization because they believe the group functions as a front for Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT). The organization emerged as part of a plan to establish foreign-backed terrorism through Kashmiri resistance fronts.
On January 5th, 2023 the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) declared TRF as a terrorist organization by invoking Section 35 of the UAPA over its participation in various destructive incidents like:
- The targeted killings of non-local labourers and minorities in Kashmir Valley;
- Attacks on security installations and convoys;
- Digital radicalization and online recruitment drives;
- Dissemination of anti-India propaganda materials.
TRF executes its tactical operations through Over Ground Workers (OGWs) who manage encrypted messaging apps with dark web platforms for conducting financial operations and communication. The organization uses social media platform algorithms to distribute extremist propaganda along with targeting young people through indoctrination.
KEY POINTS
- On Tuesday, April 22, 2025 terrorist gunmen conducted an assault on tourist visitors who visited the Baisaran meadow at South Kashmir’s Pahalgam tourist area. Tourists visiting Baisaran meadow suffered a tragic death because terrorists fired at them together with the pony operator who transported them. A surprise attack occurred in a region that was relatively free of military presence which led to serious doubts regarding inadequate security measures in such heavy civilian zones.
- Investigative agencies found shell casings from AK-series rifles during the investigation of TRF attacks and forensic experts matched these casings to weapons linked with TRF operations. Cellular devices together with satellite telephony devices yielded evidence of previous communications between alleged handlers located across the Line of Control (LoC).
- Forest Service technicians extracted data from a recovered phone which displayed encrypted calls made through Threema and Briar applications that provide secure communication systems for terror activities.
- The digital signature of TRF transmitted its information through IP tunneling networks whose servers were located in Rawalpindi and Karachi.
- The Enforcement Directorate as part of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act, 2002 (PMLA) might receive suspected terror financing cases involving cryptocurrency wallets in combination with prepaid payment instruments.
- The existing investigation uses legal structures including:
- Sections 16, 17, 18, 20 & 38 of the UAPA;
- Section 121 (Waging war against the Government of India) and Section 120B (Criminal Conspiracy) of the IPC;
- Sections 25 and 27 of the Arms Act, 1959;
- Sections 66F and 67B of the Information Technology Act, 2000 (for cyberterrorism and transmission of radical content).
RECENT DEVELOPMENTS
- Jammu and Kashmir Police together with the Army service carried out synchronized intelligence-driven operations across Anantnag and Pulwama and Kulgam districts during the early hours of April 23. Law enforcement authorities detained three suspects who appeared to serve as OGWs alongside a person who earlier received PSA detention.
- The arrested individual Basit Ahmad Dar acts as a regional logistics handler that conducts safehouse management and weapons supply operations.
- During the search operation NIA seized three AK-47 rifles and six magazines along with 158 rounds of ammunition and TRF insignia printed leaflets.
- A formal assignment of this investigation now exists between the Union Home Ministry and the National Investigation Agency (NIA). The NIA officials at senior levels explained that the terrorism conspiracy investigation would unite with an extended Pakistani-terrorism-financed operations file.
- The Indian Government plans to employ Section 43D(5) of the UAPA to deny bail opportunities to serious terrorism offenders. Under the NIA Act 2008 the legal proceedings should happen inside an NIA Court established by special designation.
CONCLUSION
The verified TRF involvement in the Pahalgam terrorist assault proves that terrorist organizations use their access to ideological propaganda together with cyberspace anonymity combined with regional security weaknesses for indirect combat operations. TRF’s illegal status in India together with its recent growth and invasive capabilities prove that India needs updated legal measures combined with improved international cooperation against cyber-terrorism alongside enhanced enforcement of counter-terrorism laws such as UAPA and PMLA. Ultimately the NIA will direct its investigation to reveal both TRF’s local and international network and capture all culprits along with their supervisors through continued judicial action.
“PRIME LEGAL is a full-service law firm that has won a National Award and has more than 20 years of experience in an array of sectors and practice areas. Prime legal falls into the category of best law firm, best lawyer, best family lawyer, best divorce lawyer, best divorce law firm, best criminal lawyer, best criminal law firm, best consumer lawyer, best civil lawyer.”
WRITTEN BY RIMPLEPREET KAUR
