IS recruits planned to blow ATS unit

The Maharashtra Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS) in its recently submitted chargesheet against four suspected ISIS (Islamic State of Iraq and Syria) operatives arrested from Parbhani has claimed that the accused had conducted reconnaissance of the ATS unit and police (rural) headquarters in Aurangabad to blow up the former. Their target list also included police officers, especially a former ATS superintendent of police who was involved in the police encounter of an Indian Mujahideen (IM) operative in Maharashtra.

Between July and August this year, based on intelligence inputs, the ATS had busted a Parbhani-based ISIS module comprising local youths who were allegedly radicalised and incited to conduct violent acts by their Syria-based handler Farook, who is suspected to be an Indian and a former IM operative.

The youths, arrested from Parbhani and Hingoli, were identified as Mohd Raisuddin Mohd Siddique, Iqbal Ahmed Kabir Ahmed, Nasir Chaus and Shahed Khan.

The ATS in its charg-esheet filed in a local court in Nanded said their investigation revealed that the ISIS handlers had asked the arrested accused to stay here and work in case visiting Iraq or Syria was difficult for them. Thereafter, Farook had instructed the four youths to avenge the death of an IM member in an alleged police encounter by targeting officers of the ATS unit and police (rural) headquarters in Aurangabad.

According to ATS probe, the four accused were informed that IM operative Abrar alias Munna alias Abdullah, an accused in the July 2008 Ahmedabad bomb blast case, had gone to meet some of his alleged associates in Aurangabad in March 2012. On a tip off, the police had raided the place where Abrar and his accomplices had gathered. The latter opened fire at the police and in the exchange Abrar’s alleged associate Azhar Qureshi alias Khilji lost his life.

Consequently, the Parbhani module was set up and the youths asked by its handlers, including Farook to avenge Khilji’s death. They targeted Aurangabad (rural) police headquarters where senior IPS officer S.P. Navinchandra Reddy was posted and resided. Mr Reddy was part of an ATS team involved in Khilji’s encounter.

On Farook’s instructions, Shahed Khan allegedly conducted a recce of the ATS unit’s office and the rural police headquarters in Aurangabad. Of the two places, Khan had planned to blow up the former with a remote-controlled Improvised Explosive Device (IED). However, he could not implement the plan.

During the course of investigation, the ATS found a note written in Arabic from one of the accused. Following its translation, it was found that the note was addressed to be an oath of allegiance to the ISIS.

The probe agency has said that although the chargesheet had been filed, further probe is on. The ATS has sent the mobile phone of a witness, a friend of the arrested accused, for forensic examination. The police said that the accused might have interacted with the witness about ISIS.