On 14th June 2023, the Ghaziabad police in Uttar Pradesh said that the mastermind of the Ghaziabad conversion racket Shahnawaz Maqsood Khan alias Baddo has links with Pakistan. The UP Police are checking if the National Security Act (NSA) can be imposed on Shahnawaz alias Baddo who was arrested from Alibag by Thane police in connection with the case of conversion through online gaming. He was sent to judicial custody for 14 days.
UP 'Conversion' Racket: Big Twist In Case As Pakistan Link Emerges After Zakir Naik's Role Suspected.#TNDIGITALVIDEOS pic.twitter.com/xfFBHzQ8DP
— TIMES NOW (@TimesNow) June 14, 2023
The Ghaziabad Police have found ample evidence against Baddo, after which NSA can be imposed against him. The DCP of Ghaziabad City shared this information in a thread of tweets. Baddo alias Shahnawaz Maqsood Khan’s connection with Pakistan has also been revealed. All this information has come out after examining his call details.
Ghaziabad City DCP Nipun Agarwal said, “In the Police Commissionerate, Ghaziabad, on 30th May 2023, a complaint was received which said that a minor boy was lured and converted. A case was immediately registered in this regard. An accused Maulvi Abdul Rehman was arrested from a local mosque. Teams were sent to Thane (Maharashtra) to arrest Shahnawaz Maqsood Khan alias Baddo.”
पुलिस कमिश्नरेट गाजियाबाद मे दि0 30.05.23 को एक नाबालिग बच्चे के बहला फुसलाकर धर्मान्तरण कराने के बाद एक तहरीर प्राप्त हुई थी जिसमे तत्काल अभियोग पंजीकृत कर लिया गया था । जिसमे मस्जिद के मौलवी अब्दुल रहमान की गिरफ्तारी सुनिश्चित कर ली गई थी एवं दूसरे नामजद अभियुक्त बद्दो उर्फ 1/4 pic.twitter.com/4FhZqq7kCh
— POLICE COMMISSIONERATE GHAZIABAD (@ghaziabadpolice) June 14, 2023
He further said, “With the help of Thane police, the accused Baddo alias Shahnawaz has been arrested and sent to jail in judicial custody yesterday. In the investigations so far, it has been revealed that the accused Shahnawaz Khan possessed two mobile phones and operated 6 email IDs from these two phones. During interrogation, the accused told that he had bought 2 email IDs for the gaming purpose. We found that one of these two email IDs has received some emails from Pakistan.”
शहनवाज की गिरफ्तारी हेतु ठाणे (महाराष्ट्र) टीमे रवाना की गई थी । ठाणे पुलिस की सहायता से अभियुक्त बद्दो उर्फ शहनवाज की गिरफ्तारी कर कल न्यायिक हिरासत मे जेल भेज दिया गया है । अभियुक्त के पास से मिले दो मोबाइल फोन मे 6 ई-मेल का चलाया जाना ज्ञात हुआ है जिसमे से 02 ई-मेल आइडी 2/4
— POLICE COMMISSIONERATE GHAZIABAD (@ghaziabadpolice) June 14, 2023
The officer further said, “We also found that 20 Pakistani phone numbers are saved in his mobile phones. We are investigating this further. A CPU and the mobile phones recovered from the accused will undergo a forensic test as well. If we find sufficient evidence in this case we will definitely impose NSA (National Security Act) against him.”
अगर पर्याप्त साक्ष्य मिलते है तो इन पर एनएसए की कार्यवाही भी की जायेगी ।
— POLICE COMMISSIONERATE GHAZIABAD (@ghaziabadpolice) June 14, 2023
वीडियो बाइट- डीसीपी सिटी (4/4)@Uppolice
Earlier on 13th June 2023, the Ghaziabad court sent the accused Shahnawaz Maqsood Khan to judicial custody for 14 days. This came a couple of days after Khan was arrested by the police from the state of Maharashtra.
Key developments in the Ghaziabad Conversion Case
A case of converting non-Muslim youths to Islam surfaced in Ghaziabad on May 30 this year when a victim filed a complaint at Kavinagar Police Station in which he said his minor son was lured into practising Islam by Islamists online. A team was formed to investigate the matter after filing an FIR under relevant sections of the Indian Penal Code (IPC). First, a Maulavi in Ghaziabad and then Shahnawaz Khan were arrested.
The Police have revealed that the prime accused involved in the case identified as Baddo alias Shahnawaz Maqsood Khan operated seven different bank accounts to handle the finances being generated from the conversion. The accused opened the bank accounts under different names and used them to transact money for conversion. The police said that all these seven bank accounts will be investigated.
Shahnawaz is the mastermind behind the nexus. He was absconding since the case came to light. But a special team of UP Police arrested him with the help of Thane police from Alibag in Maharashtra on Sunday, 11th June 2023. On Monday morning, Mumbra and Ghaziabad police produced Shahnawaz alias Baddo in Thane district court under tight security. The Ghaziabad police presented documents related to the transit remand before the court. The court had given a transit remand of 72 hours to the police. Baddo was then brought to Ghaziabad and interrogated thoroughly.
Along with Baddo, another accused identified as Maulvi Abdul Rehman alias Nanni s/o Mehmood Ansari or Sanjaynagar in the Madhuban Bapudham Police Station area of Ghaziabad was also apprehended by the police in the case. He is also being interrogated.
Police so far have found that four teenagers who were converted through the online gaming app were asked to read verses of the Quran to win the game. The police also are said to have arrested a person who arranged a SIM for Khan from Mumbai. Two other persons were also taken into custody by the police investigating the case.
