NIA to take over case involving suspected Islamic State operatives held in Gujarat

Waseem and Naeem were about to carry out ‘lone-wolf’ attacks in Gujarat.

The National Investigation Agency (NIA) will take over from Gujarat Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS) a case involving two suspected Islamic State (IS) operatives arrested in February allegedly for plotting to spread terror in the state, a senior official said on Monday.

ATS personnel take one of the brothers, accused of having Islamic State links, into custody.(HT File)

Waseem Ramodiya and his younger brother Naeem were arrested by the Gujarat ATS from Rajkot and Bhavnagar, respectively, for allegedly plotting to spread terror in the state on the instructions of their ISIS handlers.

“We will hand over the probe documents to NIA officials in the coming days,” a top ATS official said.

The two are presently lodged in Rajkot jail.

When Waseem and Naeem were in the custody of the ATS, an NIA team conducted a joint interrogation with ATS at the latter’s headquarters in Ahmedabad.

According to the FIR, the brothers were under surveillance for over a year for their suspected activities and communication with their alleged IS handlers.

It stated that Waseem and Naeem were about to carry out ‘lone-wolf’ attacks in Gujarat and had planned to escape to Syria after that.

During their interrogation by the ATS, it was revealed that Waseem had convinced Naeem to join him for spreading terror using various means, including planting bombs, the ATS official said.