Couple from Kashmir arrested from Okhla Vihar for sedition, inciting protests against CAA

New Delhi: A couple from Kashmir was arrested on Sunday from south Delhi’s Okhla Vihar near Jamia Nagar for alleged links with the Islamic State-Khorasan Province

New Delhi: A couple from Kashmir was arrested on Sunday from south Delhi’s Okhla Vihar near Jamia Nagar for alleged links with the Islamic State-Khorasan Province (ISKP), instigating protests against the Citizenship (Amendment) Act, and spreading hatred against India and between communities in the country, Delhi Police said.

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The two, 36-year-old Jahanzaib Sami and his 39-year-old wife Hina Bashir Beigh, were booked for sedition and promoting enmity between different communities under Sections 124A and 153A of the Indian Penal Code, and under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA), deputy commissioner of police (special cell) Pramod Kumar Kushwah said.

“Jahanzaib Sami, 36, and wife Hina Bashir Beigh, 39, a couple from Srinagar in Kashmir, were caught from their rented home in Okhla Vihar in an operation. Several incriminating literature related to ISIS and the CAA – having contents inciting hatred against the country and other communities – were recovered from their possession,” Kushwah added.

People associated with the two could not be immediately reached for a comment on their arrest.

Protests have continued in Delhi and several other parts over the country since Parliament passed the new citizenship law in December. Communal riots broke out in north-east Delhi last month after a clash between those protesting against the law and people supporting it, leaving at least 53 people dead.

On Sunday, DCP Kushwah said the two were members of the banned terrorist outfit and were propagating its ideology of hatred against non-Muslims and thereby also inciting Muslims to kill non-Muslims. “They were inciting Muslims to take up violent struggle against the state and against the CAA,” he said. The ISKP is the Afghanistan-based affiliate of the Islamic State.

A senior official, who was linked with the operation to apprehend the two and spoke on condition of anonymity, said the couple was in touch with senior ISKP members in Afghanistan to exploit the ongoing agitation against CAA. For the present, Sami’s activities were largely confined to propaganda for the proscribed terror group on the web, the official added.

An intelligence official said Sami was in touch with Huzaifa al-Bakistani, the Pakistani commander of ISKP, which played a key role in efforts to radicalise Kashmiri youth to join the terror group. Huzaifa al-Bakistani, a Pakistani national who first joined the Lashkar-e-Taiba before joining IS, was a known online recruiter for the terror outfit. He was killed in a drone strike in Afghanistan.

The Delhi Police said that after the arrests, they were also probing if the two and their outfit played a role in the recent communal violence in the national capital.

A B.Tech graduate, Sami has worked with several web-designing companies, while his wife holds an MBA degree and has worked at private banks and security companies, the police said.

“Sami’s association with the ISIS since 2018 has been established. He moved to Delhi with his wife in August last year. Their activities were being monitored for the past two months,” said the DCP, adding that four cellphones, one laptop, one external hard disk drive and other material have been seized from their house.

The police said that the couple created several anonymous accounts on social media platforms such as Telegram, Facebook, Threema, Surespot, Instagram and Twitter to propagate the ideology of the Islamic State. They were also circulating material against the Indian government over the new citizenship law.

Asked if the couple played a role in the north-east Delhi riots or participated in anti-CAA protests, DCP Kushwah said: “We are in the very early stage of investigation and interrogation, so not much can be said at this moment.”

A Delhi Police officer, who asked not to be named, said Sami’s wife, Beigh, was active on pro-IS handles on social media and facilitated in spotting what the group considered “talents” for its terror activities.

The intelligence officer said that Sami told interrogators about his role in publishing and promoting the February edition of the IS magazine Sawt al Hind (Voice of India). “It is assessed that the magazine, which also ridiculed mainstream Muslim leaders for what it considered deceiving the community’s interests, may have influenced a section of society, particularly Muslim youth,” the official added.