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Another JeM operative falls in ATS net in UP, third in the past one week
Senior police officials confirmed that Saifullah too was linked with Jaish like 25-year-old Mohammed Nadeem who was arrested from Saharanpur on Friday
Barely a couple of days after the Uttar Pradesh anti-terror squad (ATS) arrested a suspected Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM) operative from Saharanpur, the state police nabbed yet another person affiliated to the Pakistan-based terrorist organisation in the run up to India’s 75th anniversary of independence.
The JeM operative, identified as Habibul Islam alias Saifullah (19), was arrested from Kanpur on Sunday.
Senior police officials confirmed that Saifullah too was linked with Jaish like 25-year-old Mohammed Nadeem who was arrested from Saharanpur on Friday. Sunday’s arrest is the third terror suspect nabbed by the police in the past six days in UP.
UP additional director general (law and order) Prashant Kumar said the ATS team picked up Saifullah from his house in Sayyedbada locality of Fatehpur district based on intel extracted from Nadeem. He was later brought to Kanpur for further interrogation. The terror suspect hails from Motihari in Bihar.
Kumar said Saifullah was arrested after his association with the JeM was confirmed and direct links were drawn with terrorists based in Pakistan and Afghanistan. The ADG said the suspect was in continuous touch with Nadeem and helped him in accomplishing his target. A dagger, a mobile phone and a SIM card were recovered from his possession.
UP ATS additional director general Naveen Arora said just like Nadeem, Saifullah too had the expertise in making virtual IDs. He had prepared over 50 such IDs and shared them with terrorists based in Pakistan and Afghanistan. Arora said the suspect was linked to his handlers in these neighbouring countries through social media and instant messaging applications such as Telegram, WhatsApp and Facebook Messenger.
“Saifullah was also a member of several jihadi groups in which videos and literature related to jihad were shared by his handlers. He shared the same content to other prospective youths who showed interest towards jihad and propagate the terror group’s agenda,” the official said. “He was also offered to visit Pakistan for terror training and later operate terror activities after returning to India.”
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Nadeem was tasked by JeM to eliminate suspended Bharatiya Janata Party spokesman Nupur Sharma.
Sharma had allegedly made an objectionable statement against Prophet Muhammad during a TV news debate, and Nadeem was allegedly planning to carry out a “fidayeen” (suicide) attack on any government building or police station in retaliation.
On August 9, the ATS claimed to have foiled a terror plot aimed to target Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh workers after the arrest of alleged Islamic State (ISIS) operative Sabah-u-deen Azmi from UP’s Azamgarh district. The ATS officials said Azmi was in touch with ISIS recruiters Abu Umar and Abu Bakar Al-Shami through phone and messaging applications.
Azmi was propagating ISIS ideology through different social media platforms and even created a telegram channel named ‘Al-Saqr Media’ to brainwash Muslim youths and turn them into terrorists, the police said.
