The National Investigation Agency (NIA) apprehended two men from Hyderabad in connection with a conspiracy to carry out terrorist activities in the country. This arrest is a result of NIA raiding seven different places in the city on 6th August which were carried out to further the investigation for the 2016 ISIS terror module bust.
The arrested persons are identified by the authorities as Mohammed Abdullah Basith, a 24-year-old from Hafeezbaba Nagar and Mohammed Abdul Qhadeer, a 19-year-old from Chandrayangutta area.
According to NIA, these two men were in contact with Adnan Hassan, the main accused of the 2016 terror module case and is currently facing trial. NIA released a press statement regarding the arrests made. It stated –
“During further investigation, a fresh input was received from reliable sources that one Abdul Basith, a resident of Hyderabad, who was connected with accused Adnan Hassan and some of his associates are in regular touch with each other and conspiring to further the activities of ISIS, a proscribed terrorist organization in India.”
The officials also stated that they have recovered and seized a lot of incriminating material and sent the same to CFSL Hyderabad for analysis and data extraction.
Adnan with whom the recently arrested Abdullah Basith was keeping regular contact was arrested by the NIA in 2016. NIA registered a case against Adnan and two of his associates Sheikh Azhar ul Islam and Mohammed Farhan Shaikh on January 28, 2016, for allegedly being members of the ISIS terror group and their alleged involvement with the conspiracy to identify, motivate, radicalize and recruit Indian Muslim youth on behalf of ISIS to carry out terror activities.
During the trial, Sheikh Azhar Ul Islam and Mohammed Farhan Sheikh pleaded guilty. The case against Farhan is still ongoing.
These arrests come on the back of a string of arrests made by the NIA in the recent past. We had earlier reported about the raids and the subsequent interrogation of youths in Hyderabad. The recent signs are indicative of the deliberate attempt from ISIS to grow its influence in India.
NIA has to be vigilant in the coming days as the recent arrest of the Deputy Chief of Bangladeshi terror group Jammat-ul-Mujahideen in connection with Bodh Gaya blasts indicates, the threat to India is not only contaminated to ISIS.
