Vivek Agnihotri, the director of ‘The Kashmir Files,’ tweeted an unsigned letter claiming to be from Pakistan’s outlawed terror group Lashkar-e-Islam. The letter threatens to murder “kafirs” (non-believers) in Kashmir. “You are being watched by followers of Allah. You people have betrayed the people of Kashmir,” the letter states. “Every Kashmiri Pandit is a threat to Kashmir and Quran ,” it continues.
Latest DEATH THREAT letter to all non Muslims who don’t follow ALLAH.
Is this TRUTH or PROPAGANDA? क़ौमी नफ़रत का सत्य या झूठी कहानी?
Dear Comrades, now who is provoking them? Should we tell this TRUTH or cover it up like Kashmir Genocide of Hindus? pic.twitter.com/drNpTgPwiN
— Vivek Ranjan Agnihotri (@vivekagnihotri) April 13, 2022
A man named Vijay Raina, according to Alt News, tweeted the same letter a few hours before Vivek Agnihotri. Raina stated that the letter was discovered in Baramulla’s Veervan Pandit Colony and that it was “sent via post.” Raina, a sarpanch of Kulgam, spoke with Alt News, and said that “I am in touch with Kashmiri Pandit settlements living in Kashmir under PM package jobs. I received the letter from a resident of Veervan colony in Baramulla district,” noting that the letter was delivered by a postman, to his knowledge.
Veervan Pandit Colony #Baramulla received threatening letter through post saying "Raliv, Galiv or Tchaliv" pic.twitter.com/6umZrxSoux
— Vijay Raina (@RealVijayRaina) April 13, 2022
The letter that appeared in Veervan colony was covered by Times Now. According to the publication, “Around 150-200 families of Kashmiri Hindus live in Baramulla, Veervan, who have secured government jobs in the Pradhan Mantri Rozgar Yojana under the rehabilitation scheme in the region.”
Times Now further added, “The threatening letter was delivered via post to the security detail of the colony on Tuesday evening” and added, “however, it doesn’t seem to be real, according to the police, given the fact that the said terrorist organisation’s existence is uncertain. The police assured that robust precautions and security measures have been put in place nonetheless.
Alt News conducted a fact check and authentication process on the letter and found it to have several inconsistencies which make it extremely likely that it is a fake letter.
1. There is no signature on the letter
The letter ends with the word “commander,” however it lacks the name and signature of Lashkar-e-Islam’s commander.
2. Lashkar-e-Islam is misspelt
Image Via Alt News
In the letter, the term “Lashkar” is misspelt as “Lashker.” Especially on an official letterhead, it’s extremely unlikely that the organisation would misspell its own name. On June 30, 2008, Pakistan outlawed Lashkar-e-Islam, and a government document listing uses the right spelling – “Lashkar.” It’s worth noting that the outfit’s name is also spelt in English as “Lashkar-e-Islami.” This is the spelling used in the paper which was created by Pakistan’s National Counter Terrorism Authority (NACTA).
Image Via Alt News
3. The logo on the top left corner of the letter is of Jamaat-e-Dawa Pakistan
Image Via Alt News
The logo on the left side of the letterhead belongs to an entirely different terror organization, Jamaat-e-Dawa (JuD). The United Nations banned this organisation in 2008, recognising it as an alias of the banned Lashkar-e-Taiba terror organisation.
This can be proved by a quick reverse-image search. Furthermore, “Jamaat-ud-Dawa Pakistan” is written in Urdu beneath the two swords in the circle.
4. A letter with identical letterhead was circulating in 2016
DNA released a similar letter alleged to have been issued by Lashkar-e-Islam in 2016. This letter also revealed the terror group threatening Kashmiri Pandits with death if they did not leave Kashmir. On the left, it has the JuD logo and misspells “Lashkar” as “Lashker.”
The note was discovered near the transit accommodation for government personnel in South Kashmir, according to the Hindustan Times on August 7, 2016. “We believe it is a work of miscreants who want to create fear among the minority community,” Pulwama SP Rayees Mohammed Bhat said, as the police verified the appearance of the poster.
Image Via Alt News
5. The letter has factual inaccuracies
“We have started what was left unattended in 1990,” writes one section of the letter, ” We started this again with the killing of Kafir Nischal Jewellers and Kafir Bindaroo.”
According to reports, neither of the incidents described in the letter have been claimed by Lashkar-e-Islam.
The viral letter therefore looks to be fake and not a real Lashkar-e-Islam publication, as reported on social media.
Source: Alt News
