NEW DELHI: The National Investigation Agency (NIA) has achieved significant milestones this week in its efforts to combat terrorism in India. In separate operations, they successfully dismantled an ISIS module based in Kerala and arrested a member of the same terrorist organization from Jharkhand.
In the Kerala-related incident, the NIA thwarted potential communal unrest that could have resulted from attacks on places of worship and targeted killings of community leaders. They arrested one suspect from a hideout in Tamil Nadu and conducted searches at four locations in Thrissur and Palakkad, based on credible inputs and joint intelligence with the Anti-Terrorist Squad (ATS) of Kerala Police. The ISIS module involved in reconnaissance missions and conspiracy to carry out terrorist attacks has now been neutralized.
During the joint operation with Kerala ATS, the NIA apprehended Ashif alias Mathilakath Kodayil Ashraf from his hideout near Sathyamangalam, Tamil Nadu. Subsequently, searches were conducted at the houses of Ashif and three others, namely Seyid Nabeel Ahammed, Shiyas TS of Thrissur, and Rayees of Palakkad. The raids resulted in the seizure of digital devices and incriminating documents that further linked the module to funding ISIS activities and planning terror attacks.
In a separate incident, the NIA successfully arrested a 19-year-old youth, Faizan Ansari alias Faiz, a student of Aligarh Muslim University (AMU) in Uttar Pradesh. The arrest was made after searches at his residence in Lohardaga district, Jharkhand, and rented accommodation in Aligarh, U.P. Faizan Ansari was in contact with foreign-based ISIS handlers, who were instructing him on recruiting members for the banned outfit. Along with other ISIS members, he was planning violent actions and considering joining an ISIS conflict theater abroad.
Faizan Ansari and his associates had conspired through social media platforms to support ISIS activities in India and disseminate the organization’s propaganda. They aimed to carry out violent terror attacks on behalf of ISIS, and investigations are ongoing to delve further into the international conspiracy.
The NIA filed the case on 19th July under relevant sections of the IPC and UAPA, and they will continue their diligent investigations to uncover all aspects of the international conspiracy.
