Sheikh Sajjad Gul (born 1974), also known as Sheikh Sajjad, is a Kashmiri militant and the founder of

The Resistance Front The Resistance Front (TRF) is an Islamist militant organisation actively engaged in the insurgency in Jammu and Kashmir, and designated as a terrorist organization by India. The group is responsible for attacks on and killings of civilians, in ...

which has been active in Indian administrated

Jammu and Kashmir Jammu and Kashmir may refer to: * Jammu and Kashmir (union territory), a region administered by India as a union territory since 2019 * Jammu and Kashmir (state), a region administered by India as a state from 1952 to 2019 * Jammu and Kashmir (prin ...

since 2019.

Early life

Sheikh Sajjad Gul, born in 1974 in the Shah Mohalla area of Nawa Bazar in the old city of Srinagar, was educated at the National School in Srinagar’s

Karan Nagar Karan Nagar is a notified area and a town in the city of Srinagar, in the Indian-administered union territory of Jammu and Kashmir. A portion of Karan Nagar, known as Deewan Bagh, was the first declared civil colony in 1942 by the former princel ...

. In 1996, Gul successfully completed his BSc degree from Sri Pratap College located in

Lal Chowk Lal Chowk () is a city square in Srinagar, in the Indian union territory of Jammu and Kashmir. The square was given its name by left-wing activists who were inspired by the Russian Revolution as they fought the princely stateMaharaja, Hari Si ...

, Srinagar. Following this, he pursued higher education and earned an MBA from the Asia Pacific Institute of Management in

Bengaluru Bengaluru, also known as Bangalore (List of renamed places in India#Karnataka, its official name until 1 November 2014), is the Capital city, capital and largest city of the southern States and union territories of India, Indian state of Kar ...

, graduating in 1999. During this time, he established connections with individuals associated with groups such as Tehreek-ul-Mujahideen and

Lashkar-e-Taiba Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) is a Pakistani Islamism, Islamist militant organization driven by a Salafi jihadism, Salafi jihadist ideology. The organisation's primary stated objective is to merge the whole of Kashmir with Pakistan. It was founded in 19 ...

Early militancy career

In 2002, Gul faced arrest in

New Delhi New Delhi (; ) is the Capital city, capital of India and a part of the Delhi, National Capital Territory of Delhi (NCT). New Delhi is the seat of all three branches of the Government of India, hosting the Rashtrapati Bhavan, New Parliament ...

on charges related to a

hawala Hawala or hewala ( , meaning ''transfer'' or sometimes ''trust''), originating in India as havala (), also known as in Persian, and or in Somali, is a popular and informal value transfer system based on the performance and honour of a hug ...

racket. While in

Tihar jail Tihar Prisons, popularly known as Tihar Jail, are a prison complex in India and are one of the largest complexes of prisons in India. There are 9 functional prisons spread over more than 400 acres. Run by Department of Delhi Prisons, the prison ...

, he reportedly established connections with prominent LeT militants also incarcerated there. Later, in 2005, Gul was transferred to Srinagar Central Jail and subsequently released in 2006. Throughout 2016, he remained under constant police scrutiny following intelligence intercepts indicating his involvement in receiving a pistol from across the Line of Control (LoC) for an undisclosed mission. Then, in March 2017, Gul managed to obtain a passport using a fake address in

Jammu Jammu () is a city in Indian-administered Jammu and Kashmir (union territory), Jammu and Kashmir in the disputed Kashmir region.The application of the term "administered" to the various regions of Kashmir and a mention of the Kashmir dispute ...

, secured a visa for Pakistan, and crossed the

Wagah Wagah (; ; ), also spelled Wagha or Wahga, is a village and union council (UC 181) located in the Wahga Zone near Lahore City District, Pakistan. The town is famous for the Wagah border ceremony and also serves as a goods transit terminal a ...

border. His acquisition of the passport was deemed fraudulent.

The Resistance Front

In 2019, following the

abrogation of Article 370 On 5 August 2019, the government of India revoked the special status, or autonomy, granted under Article 370 of the Indian constitution to Jammu and Kashmir—a region administered by India as a state which consists of the larger part of Kashmir ...

, Sheikh Sajjad Gul, along with Muhammad Abbas Sheikh, co-founded

, a separatist militant organization actively engaged in advocating for the independence of Jammu and Kashmir from India. Presently, Sheikh Sajjad Gul serves as the supreme leader of The Resistance Front.

Designation

On 5 January 2023, the Indian central government banned The Resistance Front (TRF) and designated Sheikh Sajjad Gul as a terrorist. Additionally, the National Investigation Agency (NIA) has placed a reward of 1 million INR on Gul's head.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Gul, Sheikh Sajjad Living people 1974 births Kashmiri militants People from Srinagar Indian Islamists Members of jihadist groups Leaders of jihadist groups Islamist insurgents People of the Kashmir conflict Inmates of Tihar Jail