Bhopal youth held for sending emails to channel

Shariq Ahmed Khan of Nishatpura locality was arrested on Thursday for allegedly sending the e-mails in the name of Lashkar-e-Qahhar.

The 19-year-old youth, arrested for allegedly sending e-mails to a television channel claiming responsibility of the Mumbai bomb blasts as member of Lashkar-e-Qahhar, was taken to Mumbai on Friday for further investigation, police said.

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Shariq Ahmed Khan of Nishatpura locality, who was arrested on Thursday for allegedly sending the e-mails in the name of Lashkar-e-Qahhar was sent on police remand, a senior police officer said.

A Madhya Pradesh police team took Khan to Mumbai, who was caught while emerging from a coaching class in MP Nagar, he said. He will also be taken to relevant places during the course of investigation.

Khan, who was pursuing a computer course after clearing standard 12th, had sent four e-mails to a television channel on July 15, 17, 18 and 24 from different cyber cafes in the city, including one from satellite township, Bairagarh, police said.

The Maharashtra police had traced the e-mails to Bhopal following which a sharp vigil was being maintained at the cyber cafes and public computers, they said adding several persons were interrogated by the CID and Cyber Crime Branch, before Khan could be identified as the sender.

During interrogation, Khan confessed of holding 11 e-mail IDs, police said adding a case was registered against him under the IT Act.

However, the police were yet to link him to the banned SIMI or any other terrorist outfits.

Earlier, police had arrested one Sumit Tamrakar for sending similar e-mail to a local newspaper, in an attempt to "create sensation."