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New Delhi – The National Investigation Agency (NIA) on 19th September busted a Pakistan-sponsored Al-Qaeda module planning to attack vital installations in India and being motivated to carry out terror strikes in multiple places including Delhi NCR. Nine terrorists including the leader of the module were arrested in simultaneous raids at Murshidabad in West Bengal and Ernakulam in Kerala.
The nine arrested accused have been identified as — Murshid Hasan, Iyakub Biswas & Mosaraf Hossen, all three currently based in Ernakulam, Kerala; besides Najmus Sakib, Abu Sufiyan, Mainul Mondal, Leu Yean Ahmed, Al Mamun Kamal & Atitur Rehman, all r/o Murshidabad, West Bengal. All nine, including those arrested in Kerala, are from West Bengal. Of the nine arrests made, six were from West-Bengal and three from Kerala.
Leu Yean Ahmed and Abu Sufiyan from West Bengal and Mosaraf Hossen & Murshid Hasan from Kerala are among the nine Al-Qaeda terrorists arrested by National Investigation Agency (NIA) pic.twitter.com/jMnRjTIjED
— ANI (@ANI) September 19, 2020
The group was planning to undertake terrorist attacks at vital installations in India with an aim to kill innocent people and strike terror in their minds, said NIA. A large quantity of incriminating materials including digital devices, documents, jihadi literature, sharp weapons, country-made firearms, a locally fabricated body armour, articles and literature used for making home-made explosive devices have been seized from their possession. Boxes of crackers, switches and batteries, which NIA said were being used to assemble an IED, were recovered from accused arrested Abu Sufiyan’s house in Murshidabad.
Radicalised through social media
As per the preliminary investigation, the nine arrested accused were radicalised by Pakistan-based Al-Qaeda terrorists on social media and motivated to undertake attacks at multiple places including Delhi National Capital Region. For this purpose, the module — led by Murshidabad resident Abu Sufiyan, who is among the 9 arrested — was actively indulging in fundraising and a few members of the gang were planning to travel to New Delhi to procure arms and ammunition.