On Monday (3rd July), the National Investigation Agency (NIA) busted an ISIS module, which was operating in the State of Maharashtra.
Four accused, identified as Tabish Nasser Siddiqui, Zubair Noor Mohammed Shaikh, Sharjeel Shaikh and Zulfikar Ali Barodawala, were arrested by the central investigation agency during raids in Mumbai, Thane and Pune.
NIA received credible intelligence that the four accused and their associates were recruiting youth and training them to make Improvised Explosive Devices (IED) and weapons.
They also shared Do It Yourself (DIY) kits and other relevant materials among themselves for creating IEDs and manufacturing small weapons, pistols and more.
NIA BUSTS A MUMBAI-THANE-PUNE BASED ISIS MODULE WITH THE ARRESTS OF 4 ACCUSED AFTER EXTENSIVE RAIDS pic.twitter.com/MF8ICDqV4h
— NIA India (@NIA_India) July 4, 2023
An unnamed official was quoted by The Indian Express saying that the accused created inflammatory media content published in the magazine ‘Voice of Hind’ to propagate the agenda of violence and terror of the banned terrorist outfit ISIS.
It must be mentioned that the Voice of Hind was an online magazine that was being circulated using a complex network consisting of fake online entities and hiding real identities through VPN. In October 2021, NIA raided several locations in Kashmir to bust the ISIS module behind the magazine.
A case in the matter was registered on 28th June by the investigation agency based on which raids were conducted at the locations linked to the accused. NIA seized electronic gadgets and several documents related to ISIS during the raids at the houses of the accused at five different locations.
“The material seized exposed the strong and active linkages of the accused with ISIS and their efforts to motivate vulnerable youth to further the terror organisation’s anti-India agenda,” said an official.
The official press release of NIA read, “Preliminary investigations by the NIA have established that the accused had hatched a conspiracy to further the terrorist activities of ISIS, known by different names, such as Islamic State (IS)/ Islamic State of Iraq and Levant (ISIL)/Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS)/Daish/ Islamic State in Khorasan Province (ISKP)/ISIS Wilayat Khorasan/Islamic State of Iraq and the Sham Khorasan (ISIS-K).”
It added, “The accused were trying to breach the unity, integrity, security and sovereignty of the country and preparing to wage war against the Government of India, as part of the ISIS conspiracy, by raising and operating a Sleeper Cell in Maharashtra.”
NIA busts Ghazwa-e-Hind module
Earlier on 2nd July, NIA conducted raids in Bihar, Gujarat and Uttar Pradesh in connection with ‘Ghazwa-e-Hind’, a radicalised module being run by Pakistan-based suspects.
The agency searched one place in Darbhanga, two in Patna in Bihar, one in Surat (Gujarat), and one in Bareilly (Uttar Pradesh). The raids were conducted at the premises of these suspects across three states. Incriminating material, including digital devices (mobile phones, memory cards), SIM cards and documents, were seized during the raids, said the NIA.
The case came to light after the arrest of Marghoob Ahmad Danish alias Tahir, of Phulwarisharif area of Patna district, by the Bihar Police, which registered it on 14th July, last year. The NIA took over the case and re-registered it on 22nd July last year, and Marghoob was charge-sheeted on 6th January this year under various sections of the Indian Penal Code and Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, 1967.
