On 9th December, the National Investigation Agency (NIA) announced that it raided 44 locations in Maharashtra and Karnataka in which they arrested 15 ISIS terrorists of the ISIS Maharashtra module. As per the initial investigation of NIA, the arrested accused had self-declared the village of Padgha in rural Thane as a ‘liberated zone‘ and as ‘Al-Sham’. Seemingly areas in Syria are referred to with such notations. They were motivating impressionable Muslim youth to relocate to Padgha from their place of residence to strengthen the Padgha base, NIA revealed in its official press release.
NIA Swoops Down on 44 Locations in M’Rashtra & K’Nataka, Arrests 15 ISIS Operatives of ISIS Maharashtra Module pic.twitter.com/bcvJBOIA3M
— NIA India (@NIA_India) December 9, 2023
Taking to X, the security agency shared a press release that revealed shocking details about the terror module. According to the press release, the arrested accused include the leader and head of the ISIS module. As per NIA, he was administering ‘Bayath’ – an oath of allegiance to Khalifa of ISIS to the recruits.
NIA investigations have further revealed that the accused, all members of the ISIS Maharashtra module, were operating from Padgha-Borivali. From there, they had hatched the conspiracy to spread terror and carry out acts of violence across India, the agency noted.
The NIA also pointed out that the accused were also aiming to wage a war against the Indian government. The press release reads, “Pursuing the path of violent Jihad, Khilafat, ISIS, etc., the accused had aimed to disturb the peace and communal harmony of the country and to wage a war against the Government of India.”
Notably, earlier this morning, the NIA team raided 44 locations that were spread across Padgha-Borivali, Thane, Mira Road, and Pune in Maharashtra, as well as Bengaluru in Karnataka. During these raids, they arrested 15 accused for promoting terror and terror-related acts and activities of the proscribed organisation.
These raids are a part of NIA’s ongoing efforts to disrupt and demolish the attempts of the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) to carry out violent acts of terror and take innocent lives. The agency also seized huge amounts of unaccounted cash, firearms, sharp-edged weapons, incriminating documents, smartphones, and other digital devices during these raids.
As per NIA investigations, the accused, operating on the direction of their foreign handlers, had been actively involved in various terrorist activities, including the fabrication of lEDs, for furthering the violent and destructive agenda of ISIS.
According to NIA, Saqib Nachan is the main accused and the leader and head of the ISIS module. He was also administering the ‘Bayath’ (oath of allegiance to the Khalifa of ISIS) to the persons joining the proscribed organisation, as per NIA investigations.
The press release added that ISIS is a Global Terror Organisation (GTG), also known as Islamic State (IS) / Islamic State of Iraq and Levant (ISIL) / Daish / Islamic State in Khorasan Province (ISKP) / ISIS Wilayat Khorasan/Islamic State of Iraq and the Sham Khorasan (ISIS-K)). The outfit has been spreading its terror network in India by putting in place localised ISIS modules and cells in various States of the country.
In recent months, NIA has conducted large-scale raids and busted different ISIS modules along with arresting several terror terrorists in the ISIS terror conspiracy case. This is part of the agency’s bid to scuttle the organisation’s heinous and violent anti-India agenda.
As part of NIA’s crackdown, the agency registered a case against the ISIS Maharashtra module earlier this year. Since then, the NIA has undertaken strong and concerted actions to destroy the various ISIS modules and networks operating across the country.
