On January 3, the National Investigation Agency (NIA) raided the residence of BM Basha, son of renowned Kannada writer and former Ullal MLA late B M Idinabba. The agency arrested Basha’s daughter-in-law, Mundadiguttu Sadananda Marla Deepthi Marlah alias Maryam into custody for alleged links to the terrorist organization ISIS. Basha resides at Mastikatte village near Mangaluru, Karnataka.
ISIS Kerala Module case | NationaI Investigation Agency (NIA) has arrested Mundadiguttu Sadananda Marla Deepthi Marlah alias Maryam, an ISIS operative, in a joint operation with Karnataka Police, says the agency.
— ANI (@ANI) January 3, 2022
NIA Deputy SP Krishna Kumar led the team and searched the house. Several documents were seized by the security agency. NIA secured her remand at a local court in Mangalore and took her to New Delhi for further questioning.
In a statement, NIA said, “Today, NIA in co-operation with Karnataka Police arrested one ISIS operative Mundadiguttu Sadananda Marla Deepthi Marla alias Maryam w/o Anas Abdul Rahiman R/o Mangalore….”
It is noteworthy that NIA had raided the same house in August and arrested Ammar, cousin of Anas Abdul Rahiman, for his alleged ISIS links. NIA had interrogated Mariam at that time but did not detain her. Reports suggest in the last five months, the security agency gathered enough evidence against her to initiate an arrest for suspected ISIS links.
News18 quoted a senior Karnataka Police officer saying, “Mariam alias Deepthi Marla was in touch with an ISIS member Ajmals, a granddaughter of late Idinabba. Ajmala is Idinabba’s daughter’s daughter. She happens to be her cousin. Ajmala fled to Syria a few years ago, and she is believed to be a hardcore ISIS member.”
He further added Mariam was a Hindu before she got married to Basha. “She is from a well off family. Her name is Deepthi Marla. She has studied in the UAE. She was attracted towards Islam there, married a Muslim from her native place and converted later.”
NIA stated that the arrests were made in connection to a case registered in March 2021. The investigation agency had arrested one Mohammed Ameen alias Abu Yahya and two associates, Dr Rahees Rasheed and Mus’Hab Anwar. Later in August 2021, four more people were arrested, including Ammar. NIA also arrested two women from Kerala in the same month who were planning to join ISIS in West Asia.
As per an Indian Express report, NIA said, “During the investigation, it has been revealed that after the decline of ISIS Caliphate in Syria/Iraq, Deepthi Marla and Mohd. Ameen had visited Kashmir in January and March 2020 for Hijrah (religious migration) and for engaging in terrorist acts and supporting the activities of ISIS. The investigation has also revealed that Deepthi Marla was the kingpin of the instant ISIS conspiracy along with Mohd Ameen.”
So far, NIA has arrested 11 people for allegedly raising funds, radicalizing and motivating people to join the terrorist organization ISIS. Ammar’s niece Ajmala is believed to be one of 13 people from Kasaragod, Kerala, who had fled the country to join ISIS in 2016. As per the charge sheet filed by NIA in 2017, Ajmala and her husband Shifas KP left India in May 2016 and joined IS in Afghanistan’s Nangarhar province. Around that time, a total of 21 people had fled the country from Kerala to join IS.
As per the suo motu case registered by NIA last year, Mohammed Ameen and his associates were running propaganda channels on social media platforms including Instagram, Hoop and Telegram to recruit people to ISIS.
