Pakistan army accepts body of Lashkar terrorist who died of cardiac arrest

For the first time in more than two decades, Pakistan on Monday accepted the body of a trained agent and guide of Lashkar-e-Tayiba terror group who had infiltrated into Jammu and Kashmir to attack an army post.

The body of Tabarak Hussain (32) was handed over two days after he died of cardiac arrest at a military hospital in Rajouri district, officials said.

He was operated at the hospital where army soldiers even donated blood to him to keep him alive, they said.

Hussain, a resident of Sabzkot village of Kotli in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir, underwent a surgery for bullet injuries which he had suffered while trying to infiltrate into this side from across the border last month.

"Body of Hussain was handed over to Pakistan by the Indian Army in the presence of police and civil officers at Chakan Da Bagh crossing point on the LoC in Poonch district," an army official said, adding this is probably the first instance in more than two decades of Pakistan accepting the body of a terrorist.

Pakistan has always declined to accept the bodies of their nationals involved in terror acts in Jammu and Kashmir, the official said.

Hussain, a trained LeT guide and Pakistani Army agent, attempted to infiltrate into this side in Nowshera sector of Rajouri on August 21 when he was shot at and critically injured by the Indian troops.

He was later shifted to military hospital Rajouri where he underwent a surgery during which the soldiers donated three units of blood to save his life. However, he suffered a fatal cardiac arrest on September 3.

All the medico-legal formalities, including postmortem of the deceased, were completed on Sunday and accordingly, Pakistan army was contacted for return of the body, the official said.

On August 24, Army's 80 Infantry Brigade Commander, Brigadier Kapil Rana said Hussain confessed about his plan to attack the Indian Army post along with two others who, however, fled back after they were intercepted on the LoC in Nowshera sector.

"Hussain revealed that he was sent by a Colonel of Pakistan intelligence Agency named Col Yunus Chaudhry who had paid him Rs 30,000 (Pakistani currency). Hussain also revealed that he, along with other terrorists, had carried two to three close recces of Indian forward posts with an aim to target them at an opportune time.

"The go ahead to target the Indian post was given by Col Chaudhry on August 21," the brigadier had said.

He said the individual was earlier captured by the Army from the same sector in 2016, along with his brother Haroon Ali, and was repatriated on humanitarian grounds in November 2017.