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The NATIONAL Investigation Agency (NIA) has conducted searches at five places in Madhya Pradesh and Maharashtra as part of its ongoing investigation to unravel a plot hatched by the global terrorist group Islamic State to expand its activities in India.
“The searches were conducted by different teams at the houses of the suspects at four places in Seoni (Madhya Pradesh) and one location in Pune,” an NIA spokesperson said on Sunday. The searches were carried out on Saturday.
“Following on a lead, the NIA teams searched the houses of suspects Talha Khan in Pune and Akram Khan in Seoni in the Islamic State-Khorasan (ISKP) case,” the spokesperson said.
The case was initially registered by the special cell of the Delhi Police on March 8, 2020 after the arrest of a Kashmiri couple – Jahanzaib Sami Wani and his wife Hina Bashir Beigh – from Okhla Vihar in Jamia Nagar. “The couple was found to be affiliated with ISKP. During investigations, the role of another accused, Abdullah Basith, who was lodged in Tihar Jail in another case being investigated by the NIA, came to light,” the spokesperson said.
“The NIA also conducted searches at three other locations in Seoni in the Islamic State Shivamogga conspiracy case. The places searched included the residential and commercial properties of the suspects Abdul Aziz Salafi and Shoeb Khan,” the spokesperson said.
On the Shivamogga case, the spokesperson said that as part of a conspiracy hatched from abroad, the suspects – Mohamed Shariq, Maaz Muneer Khan, Yasin and others – based on the instructions of their handler located abroad, targeted properties public and private that belong to members of a specific community and have committed over 25 cases of arson and vandalism. “They even staged a fake IED explosion. They were funded through crypto currency by their online handler. As part of the larger conspiracy, accused Shariq planned to carry out an IED blast in Kadri temple, Mangalore on November 19 last year, but the IED exploded prematurely by accident, when the criminal was on his way to the target location ,” the spokesperson said.
According to the spokesperson, Salafi (40) is a prayer leader at the Seoni Jamia Masjid, while Shoeb, 26, sells car spare parts. “Salafi, together with his fellow candidate Shoeb, were found propagating harmful ideas such as ‘voting in elections is sinful for Muslims’. The Salafi-led group was in the process of radicalizing the gullible Muslim youth of MP, Maharashtra and many southern states through provocative and inflammatory speeches on YouTube. They were also trying to bring together such radical individuals in the Seoni area,” the spokesman said.
A spokesperson for the NIA said that from the material seized during the searches, it has emerged that this group is gathering information about ongoing activities and events in various jihadi theatres, including Afghanistan. “Initial examination of the suspects has revealed the fact that they are individuals with radical motivation, who absolutely hate the idea of democracy in India, and are preparing to wage jihad against the people who n believe otherwise,” said the spokesperson.
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