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Indian citizen in London suspected of arranging funding for Lebanese terror group Hizbollah, arrested

ANI
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Indian citizen in London suspected of arranging funding for Lebanese terror group Hizbollah, arrested

A 66-year-old Indian citizen Sundar Nagarajan has been arrested in London on suspicion of funding the proscribed terrorist organisation Hizbollah, British police said. 

“Sundar Nagarajan, (27.08.57) of Hayes UB3, was taken into police custody before appearing at Westminster Magistrates’ Court this afternoon for commencement of extradition proceedings,” read the Metropolitan Police press release. Officers from the National Extradition Unit – acting on an international arrest warrant – detained Nagarajan from west London following a request by US authorities. 

Madurai-born Sundar Nagarajan also known as Kasiviswanathan Naga and Nagarajan Sundar Poongulam, now faces extradition to the US where he faces charges of helping to launder money to evade US sanctions and fund Hizbollah. 

Nagarajan was taken into police custody before appearing at Westminster Magistrates’ Court this afternoon for the commencement of extradition proceedings. He was remanded to next appear at the same court on April 25, added the release. 
Officers from the Met’s Counter Terrorism Command also arrested one Nazem Ahmad on suspicion of funding terrorism, as part of a wider UK and US coordinated action targeting terrorism financing. 

According to the US, the Lebanese terrorist outfit Hizbollah uses Nazem Ahmad, and his companies, to launder substantial amounts of money bound for the terrorist group and Nagarajan is the international accountant for Nazem. 

Ahmad is believed to be connected to a wealthy art collector and diamond dealer and is suspected of being a funding source for Hizballah, said Metropolitan Police. 

Sanctions against Ahmad were announced earlier today by the UK Government. The US government also announced sanctions against Ahmad and a number of his associates, added the release. 

“Today’s arrests are the result of ongoing work and cooperation with our American colleagues, and are a key milestone in what is a complex investigation into terrorist financing,” said Detective Chief Superintendent Gareth Rees, of the Met’s Counter Terrorism Command. 

Hezbollah is a Lebanese militant group, backed by Iran, which the UK government classified as a terrorist organisation in 2019. 
“Terrorist groups rely on financial support and funding for their activities and the NTFIU works closely with agencies in the UK and around the world to identify and take action against those people who provide and facilitate this funding. With our international partners, we will never give up on our mission to disrupt terrorist activity, both in the UK and abroad, in order to keep the public safe,” added Rees. 

The US Treasury Department had on April 18 this week unveiled sanctions on what it said was a vast international money laundering and sanctions evasion network, targeting 52 people and entities over the payment and shipment of cash, diamonds, precious gems, art and luxury goods for the benefit of Nazem Ahmad. 

The network operating in Lebanon, the United Arab Emirates, South Africa, Angola, Cote d’Ivoire, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Belgium, the United Kingdom, and Hong Kong facilitated the payment, shipment, and delivery of cash, diamonds, precious gems, art, and luxury goods for the benefit of Hizballah financier and Specially Designated Global Terrorist Nazem Said Ahmad, who was designated on December 13, 2019, for providing material support to Hizballah, the US Treasury Department said. 

According to a US Treasury Department release, Sundar Nagarajan acted as Nazem Said Ahmad’s primary international accountant, providing material support through his management of, and accounting for, businesses in Nazem Said Ahmad’s network. 

Nagarajan is the central manager of financial ledgers detailing the network’s operations in Hong Kong, the United Arab Emirates, and South Africa. Sundar Nagarajan also facilitated payment for and shipment of art that Nazem Said Ahmad purchased from major auction houses and galleries, it said.

(This news report is published from a syndicated feed. Except for the headline, the content has not been written or edited by OpIndia staff)

‘Wanted to become like Lawrence Bishnoi’: Shooter Sunny Singh who killed Atiq Ahmed reveals Gogi gang connection

OpIndia Staff
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‘Wanted to become like Lawrence Bishnoi’: Shooter Sunny Singh who killed Atiq Ahmed reveals Gogi gang connection

One after the other, shocking revelations are being made concerning the shooting of mafia brothers Atiq Ahmed and Ashraf Ahmed. It has now been reported that Sunny Singh, one of the three shooters who gunned down the dreaded gangster brothers on April 15, has told the police that they procured firearms used in the crime from their contacts in the ‘Jitendra Gogi gang’ and that the Gogi gang wanted to use the three of them for carrying out something big in the Delhi NCR.

It was earlier reported that the three shooters Sunny, Lovelesh Tiwari, and Arun Maurya were posing as a journalist when they opened fire at Atiq and Ashraf, now it has come to the fore that the Gogi gang reportedly provided the identity cards, camera, and mics of ‘NCR’ news channel. 

These shooters got in touch with the Gogi gang through Babar of Kanpur, who was also connected with this gang. The Gogi gang reportedly obtains the weapons from Punjab. It is important to recall that Jitendra Gogi, the leader of this gang was shot dead inside Rohini court in Delhi in 2021. Jitendra Gogi was known to be quite close to the gangster Lawrence Bishnoi. Sunny, Arun, and Lovelesh also wanted to become like Lawrence Bishnoi. 

Accused Sunny Singh further revealed that they had originally not planned to gun down the Ahmed brothers in the hospital rather the plan was to kill them inside the court on 13 April. 

The three shooters travelled from Lucknow to Prayagraj by bus a day earlier. All three stayed in a hotel in Prayagraj that was located in front of the railway station, 1.5 kilometres from Colvin Hospital. On April 15, they had carried out a reconnaissance of the hospital.

Moreover, Sunny reportedly claimed that they also bought three mobile phones but were unable to use them since they could not obtain fake SIM cards. Sunny also said that he and the other two accused shouted “Jai Shree Ram” slogans after shooting Atiq and Ashraf dead to get over their fear. He added that no one has asked them to work in the jail anymore because they are now receiving a lot of “respect” there.

Hamirpur resident Sunny Singh (23) is a history-sheeter and has 14 cases filed against him at the Kurara police station, according to UP Police. The charges against him include attempts to murder, robbery, illegal weapons, smuggling of illegal drugs and offences under the gangster act.

Sunny’s brother and father died long ago and his mother lives in her paternal house. Sunny has been active in the criminal world for over ten years and has no contact with his family. His elder brother Pintu Singh said the family has had nothing to do with Sunny for a long time.

No relief to Rahul Gandhi, Surat Sessions dismisses disqualified Congress MP’s plea in Modi surname defamation case

OpIndia Staff
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No relief to Rahul Gandhi, Surat Sessions dismisses disqualified Congress MP’s plea in Modi surname defamation case

The Surat Sessions Court on Thursday dismissed Rahul Gandhi’s plea for suspending his 2 years punishment in his ‘Modi surname’ case. The two years’ punishment given upon his conviction now remains and he continues to be disqualified as an MP.

During an election rally in the run-up to the 2019 elections, Rahul Gandhi had mocked an entire community by saying, “Nirav Modi, Lalit Modi, Narendra Modi… how come they all have Modi as a common surname? How come all thieves have Modi as a common surname?”

Bharatiya Janata Party MLA from Surat Purnesh Modi had filed a complaint against the Congress leader for defaming the entire Modi community. Former Congress President Rahul Gandhi was booked under Sections 499 and 500 of the Indian Penal Code, which deal with criminal defamation.

In June 2021 Rahul Gandhi had appeared before a magistrate’s court in Surat to record his statement.

During the hearing, the Gandhi-scion Rahul Gandhi denied making any defamatory remarks on people with “Modi” surname. According to Desh Gujarat, a lawyer has said that Rahul Gandhi responded to every question with, “I don’t know, I don’t know, I don’t know”.

As the magistrate asked Rahul Gandhi if he had accused Prime Minister Narendra Modi of giving Rs 30 crore to an industrialist, the Congress leader claimed that he was a national leader who raises issues of corruption and unemployment in his addresses in the interest of the nation. The Gandhi-scion claimed that it was his right to raise such issues in the rallies.

When the court asked if he had said all people with Modi surname were thieves, Gandhi claimed he never said such words. Prior to that, Rahul Gandhi had appeared before the court in October 2019 and had also pleaded not guilty for his comment.

In March this year, Surat court held him guilty in the criminal defamation case. Later, he had moved the higher court against the conviction. However, that, too, has now been dismissed.

Maharashtra: Posters calling Atiq Ahmed, Ashraf as ‘martyrs’ and Hindus as ‘Ga*dus’ put up in Beed, three arrested

OpIndia Staff
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Maharashtra: Posters calling Atiq Ahmed, Ashraf as ‘martyrs’ and Hindus as ‘Ga*dus’ put up in Beed, three arrested

On Wednesday, the Maharashtra Police arrested at least three persons in Beed district for putting up huge posters referring to mafia-turned poltician Atiq Ahmed and his brother Ashraf as ‘martyrs’. The posters were put up by the Mohsin Bhaiya Mitra Mandal in the Majalgaon area of the district.

The Police took cognizance of the event and immediately ordered the removal of the posters. The police also filed a complaint under sections 293, 294 and 153 IPC after Vishwa Hindu Parishad lodged a police complaint over posters.

Swapnil R Rathod, SDPO, Georai commented on the matter saying, “A controversial banner was put up in Majalgaon in support of Atiq Ahmed and Ashraf. The police immediately took the banner down as it could have led to communal tension.”

The posters called the mafia-turned-politician martyrs and also happened to abuse the people from the Hindu community. “Murder of Atiq is death of democracy,” the matter printed on the poster read. The poster also referred to Hindus and read, “They are not Hindus, they are Ga*dus.”

This is days after the gangster-turned-politician Atiq Ahmed and his brother Ashraf were killed by three persons identified as Lavlesh Tiwari (22) of Banda, Mohit alias Sunny (23) of Hamirpur, and Arun Maurya (18) of Kasganj. The duo was killed while they were being taken by the police for medical examination in the Prayagraj Hospital.

The video of the murder was widely circulated on social media in which the duo could be seen shot by the three individuals in the time span of around 40 seconds. The accused were arrested soon after the dramatic shootout.

In order to investigate killings, the Uttar Pradesh government has assembled a three-person judicial team, which will provide its findings in two months. A Special Investigation Team (SIT) has also been established to look into the deaths of the Ahmed brothers.

It is notable that Beed is situated right in the middle of the Marathwada region of Maharashtra which once used to be a part of Nizam territory before getting independence on 17th September 1948. All the eight districts of this region are very sensitive in communal angles and have been a safe home for the sleeper cells of various Islamic terrorist organizations. The Mastermind of 26/11 attacks Abu Jundal alias Jabiuddin Ansari, who instructed the terrorists in Taj while he himself sat in Karachi, hails from the same Beed city. Last year, “Pehle Hijab Fir Kitab” banners were also raised in Beed during the Karnataka hijab Row.

Yemen: More than 80 people die in stampede after Houthis fire gun to control crowds during Ramzan aid distribution

OpIndia Staff
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Yemen: More than 80 people die in stampede after Houthis fire gun to control crowds during Ramzan aid distribution

On April 19 (local time), more than 80 people died, and over a hundred others were injured in a stampede that occurred at an event to distribute financial aid during Ramzan in Sanaa, Yemen. 13 among the injured were in critical condition. As per reports, the crown possibly got spooked by a gunshot and an electrical explosion leading to the stampede.

Though the country is undergoing a long conflict, the incident was unrelated. The event was organised in view of the upcoming Muslim holiday of Eid al-Fitr at a school. As per AP, the cash distribution amount was 5000 Yemeni Riyals or roughly $8 per person.

Trigger warning: Visuals are disturbing.

Associate Press’s report suggested the armed Houthi rebels allegedly fired into the air to control the crowd that struck an electrical wire leading to an explosion. The gunshot, followed by the explosion, caused panic among the crowd, including women and children. Several videos of the incident have gone viral on social media, where dozens of bodies could be seen lying on the ground. Some of them were motionless, while others were screaming for help.

Trigger warning: Visuals are disturbing.

Notably, Sanaa has a high density of extremely poor people. The Interior Ministry, controlled by Houthis, said the merchants organised the event. The people were supposed to get $8 (5,000 Yemeni Riyal) per person from a charity that the merchants funded. It is considered auspicious for the rich to hand out cash and food to the poor during Ramzan.

Brig. Abdel-Khaleq al-Aghri, Interior Ministry spokesperson, alleged that the stampede happened due to the “random distribution” of the funds, and there was no coordination between the organisers and the local authorities. He said, “What happened tonight is a tragic and painful accident, as dozens of people were killed due to a large stampede of a number of citizens caused by a random distribution of sums of money by some merchants and without coordination with the Ministry of Interior.”

Houthi officials released a video of the incident’s aftermath that showed bloodstains, shoes and other articles belonging to the victims. Soon after the incident, the school was sealed off by the officials. Two of the organised were held by the Houthis. Investigation into the incident is underway.

Houthi officials have announced a compensation of $2,000 to every family that has lost a relative. Those who got injured would get $400 as compensation.

The conflict in Yemen

In 2014, Iranian-backed Houthis took over the capital city and removed the internationally recognised government. In 2015, the Saudi-led coalition intervened and tried to restore the government. Since then, the conflict has continued in the Middle Eastern country, becoming a proxy war between Iran and Saudi Arabia. Reportedly around 1,50,000 people have lost their lives in the conflict, making it one of the largest human-made disasters worldwide. Diseases like cholera are also common among the population due to abject poverty and lack of basic necessities like food and drinking water.

‘Maulana of mazar told me to slash working women’: Bareilly police arrest Sajjad for attacking four women with razor blade

OpIndia Staff
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‘Maulana of mazar told me to slash working women’: Bareilly police arrest Sajjad for attacking four women with razor blade

In the Bareilly district of Uttar Pradesh, a person named Mohammad Sajjad has been arrested by the police on Tuesday, April 18, for attacking four women with a razor blade. The police was searching for him for the last few days. Shocking revelations have been made regarding the motive of the accused behind attacking four young women. 

The accused is a resident of the Basmandi area under the Kotwali Police Station precinct. Accused Sajjad was roaming on a bike without a number plate for the last twenty days in the secluded streets of Qila and Prem Nagar police station areas and attacking young women, leaving them severely injured. A case has been registered by one of the victims in Prem Nagar. After analyzing the CCTV footage available, the accused was arrested on Tuesday and the blade and bike used in the crime were also confiscated by the police. 

During interrogation, accused Sajjad told the police that he attacked four women with a blade as he was directed by a Maulana of a local Mazar to do so in order to get rid of the case filed against him by his third wife Fiza.

The 42-year-old accused Sajjad has two sons and a daughter from his first wife Sabina and second wife Raveena. Accused Sajjad a carpenter by profession told the police that while he was in Jagatpur, he fell in love with a 25-year-old woman named Fiza and that the two also had a Nikah. However, the two later had a dispute following which Fiza filed a case against Sajjad. Some media reports have mentioned that the case has been filed by Raveena, the second wife of the accused.

To get rid of this legal dispute, the accused Sajjad started visiting a Mazar where a Maulana instigated him to harm working women on the occasion of the day and night of Jummah, not once but at least seven to nine times. The Maulana also instructed Sajjad to attack his targets between 7 pm and 9 pm. He asked the accused to be careful about the timings adding that only then the effect of the ‘magic’ would work. After committing the crime, the accused used to inform Maulana about the same. Before the accused harmed another woman, the police nabbed him. 

Meanwhile, SP (City) Rahul Bhati said that for the past fifteen days, four women were attacked in the city adding that three cases were registered in the Qila area and one in Prem Nagar. SP Bhati also added that the police have not yet received any complaint against the Maulana of the said Mazar.

Nine Pakistanis on their way to Mecca for Umrah in Ramzan killed in road accident

ANI
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Nine Pakistanis on their way to Mecca for Umrah in Ramzan killed in road accident

At least nine Pakistani Umrah pilgrims including women and children have lost their lives in a road accident in Saudi Arabia, Pakistan-based ARY News reported on Wednesday night. 

As per details, nine Pakistani citizens died while five others sustained injuries in the road accident. The Pakistani pilgrims were travelling to Riyadh from Medina after performing Umrah when they met with an unfortunate accident near the Al-Qasim area, as per ARY News. 

The victims are said to be the residents of Nankana Sahib’s neighbouring villages Islamnagar and Chak 18. They were in Saudi Arabia on visit visas. 

Recently, at least 20 Umrah pilgrims were killed and 29 injured after a bus crashed southwest of Saudi Arabia, Dubai-based Gulf News reported. 

The bus hit a bridge, tipped over, and caught fire. 

The accident, which occurred due to a brake failure, took place on the road joining Asir province and the city of Abha, Gulf News reported. 

The victims were on their way to Mecca to conduct Umrah.

(This news report is published from a syndicated feed. Except for the headline, the content has not been written or edited by OpIndia staff)

Uttar Pradesh: Varanasi youth gets ‘Sar Tan Se Juda’ threats, holds Alt News’ Mohammed Zubair responsible

OpIndia Staff
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Uttar Pradesh: Varanasi youth gets ‘Sar Tan Se Juda’ threats, holds Alt News’ Mohammed Zubair responsible

Yugveer Arjav, a young businessman from Varanasi in Uttar Pradesh, received death threats as his trimmed video went viral on social media. The youth has held propagandist and Alt-News co-founder Mohammed Zubair responsible for the beheading threats issued by Islamists. He said that the threat calls started after Mohammed Zubair shared the controversial video from his Twitter handle. Yugveer Arjav has sought protection from the Uttar Pradesh state government.

As he spoke to OpIndia, Yugveer Arjav said that one of his videos is wrongly edited and publicised. Since then, he is receiving threatening calls. He said that the Islamists are trying to make him as insecure as former BJP spokesperson Nupur Sharma. Yugveer Arjav has shared with OpIndia a copy of the online complaint he made to the police. Mohammad Zubair’s name is also mentioned in it.

On 19th April 2023, Yugveer Arjav told OpIndia that about 2 months ago, he made a funny video. It was uploaded on Facebook. Most of the things in the video were quoted from Islamic books. Still, some people had a problem with it. According to Yugveer Arjav, he deleted the video considering the public sentiment. He also expressed regret over hurting people’s feelings.

However, according to Yugveer, his video was wrongly edited and publicised in a manner to suit the ‘hostile situation’ in Uttar Pradesh. Explaining more about the ‘hostile situation’ he told that he was referring to the tension that prevailed in the state after mafia Atiq Ahmed’s murder. He said that someone has edited his old video and put some objectionable photos in it and it is being made viral with the intention of spreading tension. According to Yugveer, Mohammad Zubair played the biggest role in making it viral.

Yugveer Arjav says that ever since Mohammad Zubair retweeted his edited video, he has been receiving beheading threats from the country and abroad. He said that he has been receiving threatening calls from numbers as far as Saudi Arabia, sometimes a threat that says ‘Sar Tan Se Juda‘, and sometimes a message like ‘only a few days left’. According to Yugveer, some people posing as policemen called and threatened him. Some called up as lawyers and said an FIR has been lodged against him. Yugveer Arjav said that due to this, he is mentally disturbed and frightened. He also said that he could not sleep for the last 72 hours.

‘He did obscene acts with me, dirtied my jeans’: Moradabad Police arrests Javed in connection with molestation of a Pharma student

OpIndia Staff
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‘He did obscene acts with me, dirtied my jeans’: Moradabad Police arrests Javed in connection with molestation of a Pharma student

A Muslim youth named Javed molested a young girl in a shopping mall that comes under the Kotwali police station of Moradabad. The girl is a student in a pharmacy course. She filed a complaint at the police station. The police have arrested the accused Javed.

In her complaint, the victim said that she had gone to V mart with her sister for shopping on 16th April 2023, in the afternoon. She further said, “At the time of billing, an unknown person came from behind me and started doing obscene acts with me, and started running away after dirtying my jeans. When I shouted, my sister and I caught hold of the man with the help of Praveen Kumar, the manager at V Mart. After being caught, when asked about his name and address, he revealed his name as Javed son of Maskur resident of Lal Masjid Chauraha, Police Station Kotwali, Moradabad. I caught him with the help of my sister and V Mart manager Praveen Kumar and brought him to the police station.”

Desh Deepak Singh – the CO of the Kotwali police station said that the accused Javed is a resident of the Lal Masjid Chauraha area in Moradabad and he is arrested. A case has been registered against the accused and he is sent to jail.

The girl hails from Gannaur town in the Sonipat district of Haryana. She studies pharmacy in Moradabad. As the girl shouted and asked for help, the V mart staff helped her catch the accused. According to reports, Javed was also beaten up by the mob of customers before he was taken to the police station.

Karnataka: BJYM leader Praveen Kammar killed during temple festival in Dharwad, four detained

OpIndia Staff
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Karnataka: BJYM leader Praveen Kammar killed during temple festival in Dharwad, four detained

Praveen Kammar (36), vice-president of Kotur Gram Panchayat and leader of Bharatiya Janata Yuva Morcha (BJYM), was stabbed to death in the village at around 1 AM pm on Wednesday, ahead of Karnataka polls. He was taken to the district municipal hospital before being transferred to the SDM Medical College hospital, where he succumbed to injuries on Wednesday morning. A case has been registered and four persons have been detained so far.

The politician was also an executive member of the BJYM Dharwad unit. The murder, according to the authorities, happened during the Udachamma Devi temple celebrations. A yatra was being taken out and ‘Prasadam’ was being distributed when he got into an altercation with some inebriated individuals.

They initially left but returned and started abusing the BJP leader and his supporters. Following this, a fight broke out between the two sides. When Praveen Kammar tried to intervene to prevent the scuffle, they hit him in the face and then stabbed him in the neck and abdomen.

The brawl was reportedly between his supporters and those of the opposition leaders. The murder is allegedly the result of political rivalry. After this incident, the police sprang into action and began conducting raids in numerous locations.

According to Karnataka Law and Order ADGP Alok Kumar, Praveen was stabbed at around 1 am last night at Kotur village of Dharwad district. He was shifted to SDM Medical College, Dharwad where he succumbed to injuries at 5 am on Wednesday morning. Kumar added that four persons, including the one who stabbed Praveen Kammar, have been nabbed.

Tejashwi Surya, a member of parliament and president of BJYM also posted about the incident. He expressed his grief and stated that the killing of BYJM leader Praveen Kammar is motivated by political rivalry. He demanded immediate action from the police in this matter.

Union Minister Prahlad Joshi, Dharwad Rural MLA Amrut Desai and others visited the SDM Hospital. His body was handed over to the family after post-mortem.

This comes after BJP Yuva Morcha leader Praveen Nettaru was hacked to death with weapons by unidentified people in front of his broiler shop on July 26, 2022. The murder led to unrest in a number of Dakshina Kannada district neighbourhoods. Restrictions under section 144 of the Indian Penal Code were also imposed in Puttar last year in the wake of the incident. The NIA filed a charge sheet against 20 members of the Popular Front of India (PFI) in this case.

The names of the accused against whom the National Investigation Agency (NIA) has so far filed a charge sheet, in this case, are Mohammad Shiab, Mustafa Pachar, A Bashir, Riyaz, Masood, Mohammad Sharif, Abu Bakar Siddiq, Naufal, Ismail, Iqbal, Shaheed, Mohammad Shafiq, Umar Farooq, Abdul Kabir, Mohammad Isha, Abid, Sheikh Hussain, Zakir, Abdul Haris and Tufail.

However, Mustafa Paichar, Masood, Mohammad Sharif, Abu Bakar Siddiq, Umar Farooq and Tufail are absconding. A reward for the arrest of these suspects has also been announced by the NIA.

Notably, the father of one of the accused, Shafiq, worked at Praveen Nettaru’s shop and. Shafiq used to spend a considerable amount of time with the latter. According to reports, the NIA charge sheet has revealed the accused’s plot to incite communal unrest and bloodshed in the country, through the course of its investigation. Their aim was to create chaos and anarchy in India.

The NIA asserted that Praveen Nettaru’s murderers shared the same goal of enforcing Islamic law in India by the year 2047 as the suspects apprehended in Phulwari Sharif, Bihar. They formed a separate team called the ‘Service Team’ to execute their targeted individuals.

PFI is an Islamist organisation which was banned by the Indian Ministry of Home Affairs under Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA) on 28 September 2022 for a period of five years.

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