National Investigation Agency Archives - Lokmarg

NIA Court Sentences 4 Terrorists, Including Kulwinderjeet To Life Imprisonment

By LokMarg 28th March 2024

In a significant triumph for the National Investigation Agency (NIA) in its battle against terrorist organizations and networks, a specialized court on Thursday handed down life sentences to four militants in a terrorism conspiracy case linked to the proscribed Babbar Khalsa International (BKI) group.

The terrorists convicted and sentenced by the court include the chief conspirator, Kulwinderjeet Singh alias Khanpuria, who was involved in many terrorist cases, including a bomb blast at Connaught Place and a grenade attack at Red Fort, Delhi, in the nineties.

He was also wanted in many terrorist cases, including a conspiracy to carry out targeted killings in Punjab.

Khanpuria was found to have masterminded the BKI terror conspiracy in the instant case. He had been absconding since 2019 and was arrested by the NIA at Indira Gandhi International Airport, New Delhi, on his deportation from Bangkok in November 2022.

He had then been carrying a reward of Rs 5 lakh for his arrest and had been declared a proclaimed offender by the NIA court.

NIA investigations had revealed that Khanpuria, along with his handlers and associates, based in India and abroad, had planned and conspired to commit terrorist attacks in India. He later managed to flee from India.

According to the NIA investigation, while Khanpuria was based abroad, he came in contact with Harmeet, alias PhD, and subsequently with wanted Pakistan-based International Sikh Youth Federation (ISYF) Chief Lakhbir Singh Rode, who roped him into using his India-based terrorist associates for targeting various identified individuals as well as establishments.

The NIA Special Court in Punjab’s Mohali announced the conviction of Khanpuria along with three other terrorists.

The other three accused, convicted and sentenced to life imprisonment on Thursday, have been identified as Sampuran Singh, Ravinderpal Singh, Jagdev Singh, and Harcharan Singh.

“All four were actively involved in the criminal conspiracy to unleash a wave of terror attacks across the country, with the aim of reviving the terrorist movement in Punjab. To further their nefarious anti-India agenda, they had collected funds, arms, and ammunition, and had also conducted a recce of significant targets, including Dera Sacha Sauda Complex, security-related establishments in the Punjab, and BBMB Office in Chandigarh,” NIA investigations revealed.

NIA had chargesheeted them earlier under various sections of the Indian Penal Code, Sections 3 and 25 of the Arms Act, and Sections 17, 18, 18 B, 20, 38 and 39 of the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act. The case was originally registered by Punjab’s Special Operation Cell (SSOC) on May 30, 2019. It was taken over and re-registered by the NIA later, in pursuance of a Ministry of Home Affairs order dated June 26, 2019. (ANI)

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Nizamabad PFI Case: NIA Nabs Absconding Accused

By LokMarg 2nd March 2024

The National Investigation Agency (NIA) has apprehended an absconding chargesheeted accused carrying a cash reward of Rs 2 lakh for his arrest in the Nizamabad Popular Front of India (PFI) case involving an anti-India conspiracy by the banned outfit to carry out acts of terror and violence.

Abdul Saleem, the State Secretary for the PFI Telangana North, is the 15th accused to be arrested in the case, originally registered by the State Police at Nizamabad Police Station in July 2022 and taken over by the NIA in August the same year.

Saleem has been on the run since the case came to light and NIA had subsequently declared the reward for his arrest. He was nabbed from Mydukur in Kadappa district of Andhra Pradesh based in an intelligence-led operation.

NIA investigations in the case have revealed that Saleem was involved in radicalisation and recruitment of impressionable Muslim youth into the PFI. He was also sending them to terror training camps for weapons training to equip them to further the organisation’s nefarious anti-India agenda.

The NIA had earlier chargesheeted 11 accused, including Abdul Saleem, in December 2022, followed by supplementary chargesheets against five in March and one in December last year.

“An integral part of the conspiracy of the PFI and its cadres was to make India into an Islamic nation by 2047,” said the NIA.(ANI)

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Handwara Narco-Terrorism: NIA Seizes Rs 2.27 Cr Linked With LeT, Hizbul Mujahideen

By LokMarg 24th February 2024

The National Investigation Agency (NIA) has attached four properties and seized cash in the Handwara narco-terrorism case, involving two proscribed terrorist outfits, Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) and Hizbul Mujahideen (HM).

The properties belonging to the four accused have been attached in tehsil Handwara of district Kupwara by the NIA, which has also seized a total of Rs 2.27 crore in cash under Section 25 of the UA(P) Act, the NIA stated on Saturday.

“The Immovable properties attached are the double-storeyed house of accused Afaq Ahmad Wani, the single-storeyed house of accused Muneer Ahmad Pandey, the house of Saleem Andrabi and the double-storeyed house of Islam ul Haq,” it stated.

A total of 12 accused have so far been arrested in the case, in which the NIA has charge sheeted 15 individuals.

The case (RC 03/2020/NIA/JMU) relates to the use of the ‘proceeds of narcotic drugs’ to fund violent terror activities by LeT and HM operating in the Handwara-Kupwara region.

The case was registered following the recovery of a black bag and a large number of Indian currency notes of 500 denominations during the checking of vehicles in the Langate area of Handwara. The seizure was made from a white Creta car without a registration number, it added.

Preliminary questioning of the car’s driver, Abdul Momin Peer, had led to the revelations about the narco-terror nexus, which had sparked a detailed investigation by the NIA.

During the initial searches in the houses of various accused, 21 kg of heroin was seized, in addition to various incriminating materials, including large sums of cash.

The anti-terror agency is continuing with its relentless efforts to destroy and dismantle the terror network in Kashmir and safeguard national security. (ANI)

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Coimbatore Car Blast: NIA Raids 21 Places, Arrests Four

By LokMarg 11th February 2024

The National Investigation Agency (NIA) has arrested four suspects during its raid at 21 locations across Tamil Nadu in the 2022 ISIS-inspired Coimbatore car bomb blast and the ISIS radicalisation and recruitment case, the agency said on Sunday.

The anti-terror agency search operation conducted on Saturday led to the seizure of a large number of electronic devices, material objects and documents. These included six laptops, 25 mobile phones, 34 SIM cards, six SD cards and three hard discs.

Raids were conducted at 11 locations associated with Madras Arabic College and Kovai Arabic College in connection with the radicalisation case, which involved individuals engaged in the clandestine radicalisation of gullible youth in the garb of Arabic language classes through the preaching of radical ideologies and promotion of violent Jihad at their Regional Study Centres in Tamil Nadu.

Besides the Arabic classes, the agency said, the radicalisation took place online, through social media platforms and mobile applications, such as WhatsApp and Telegram.

“The ISIS operatives were using the classes and the social media to impart radical sermons to propagate Khilafat and ISIS ideologies inimical to India’s constitutionally established principles of secularism and democracy,” said the NIA.

As per the anti-terror agency, susceptible youth were also being recruited to commit terrorist acts and unlawful activities, such as the Coimbatore car bomb blast that took place in October 2022.

The NIA investigations had further revealed that 10 accused arrested in the blast case had been associated with the Kovai Arabic College in Coimbatore.

The NIA teams on Saturday also simultaneously swooped down on another 10 places connected with the car bomb blast case.

“Extensive searches were conducted at various places linked with suspects, who were part of an encrypted mobile platform group, along with the accused arrested in connection with the ISIS-inspired VBIED terror attack in Coimbatore.”

Investigations showed that the suspects had eulogised Zahran Hashim, the dead Sri Lankan terrorist who had been preaching hate and violence and had orchestrated the PBIED attack that killed more than 250 civilians in Colombo, Sri Lanka, in 2019, said the NIA.

“The suspects and accused were found to have used the platform to discuss ISIS activities and prospects with a view of establishing the outfit’s foothold in India,” said the NIA.

Three of the persons arrested following the raids were linked with the Madras Arabic College, said the NIA, adding “they included one Jameel Basha Umari, who had floated the college to promote fundamentalism, extremism and radicalisation.”

Jameel Basha Umari had spoken vocally in support of Khilafat ideology and had also promoted and advocated the concept of martyrdom for violent Jihad. Two others, Maulvi Hussain Faizy alias Mohammed Hussain Faizy and Irshath, are former students of Jameel and Madras Arabic College, and had been responsible for rechristening Madras Arabic College as Kovai Arabic College, said the NIA.

The fourth accused arrested following the raids has been identified as Syed Abdur Rahman Umari, who was in possession of incriminating literature connected with ISIS. He was also involved in propagating the tenets of ISIS to the accused connected with the Coimbatore car bomb blast case through secret ‘bayans’ and ‘masooras’.

“Investigations in both RC.No.01/2023/NIA/CHE (TN ISIS Radicalisation and Recruitment Case) and RC.No. 01/2022/NIA/CHE (Coimbatore car bomb blast case), are continuing,” added the agency. (ANI)

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NIA Files First Chargesheet Against Five In Naxal Multi-State Revival Case

By LokMarg 7th February 2024

The National Investigation Agency (NIA) has filed its first chargesheet against five accused in a case relating to attempts by the Naxals to revive their terror plans and agenda in various states of India, the agency said on Wednesday.

The charge-sheet was filed on Monday before the NIA Special Court, Ranchi, Jharkhand. The case relates to a criminal conspiracy by the proscribed organisation to expand, revive and propagate the violent ideology of the banned outfit in Jharkhand, Bihar, Chhattisgarh and other states.

As per the NIA, the five chargesheeted accused, along with top leaders of Naxals, were actively engaged in the recruitment of cadres, raising of funds for terrorist acts, procurement of arms and ammunition, as well as providing training in weapons handling, field craft, and IED fabrication and their planting.

The accused had also liaised with their incarcerated CPI (Maoist) cadres and overground workers to achieve their objectives, as per NIA investigations, said the agency.

The five men chargesheeted by the NIA include Prashant Bose alias Kishan Da alias Nirbhay alias Kajal alias Mahesh alias Kishanji, a Politburo member of CPI (Maoist) who was heading the organisation’s Eastern Regional Bureau.

One of the most important Maoist leaders in Bihar and Jharkhand, Prashant Bose was arrested in the case on August 10 last year, said the NIaa, adding “Bose also had 47 criminal cases registered against him in various police stations of Jharkhand.”

Another chargesheeted accused has been identified as Nunuchand Mahto alias Nunulal Mahto alias Lakhan alias Tiger alias Mukhiya Ji alias Neta Ji, the Sub Zonal Commander of CPI (Maoist) having 60 criminal cases against him in Jharkhand. He was also arrested along with Prashant Bose and the two other accused, namely Duryodhan Prasad Mahto alias Mithilesh Singh (Regional Committee member of Naxals with 77 cases against him) and Krishna Hansda alias Saurav Da. Krishna is also a Regional Committee member and Sub Zonal C Commander of Naxals and has 37 criminal cases against him.

The fifth chargesheeted accused is Pramod Mishra alias Banbihari Ji alias Sohan Da alias Doctor Sahab. Pramod Mishra is a Politburo member of the CPI (Maoist) and was heading the Northern Regional Bureau of the organisation and was trying to revive and strengthen the naxal outfit in Bihar with funding and support provided by the Eastern Regional Bureau. He was arrested in this case in September 2023 and has 47 criminal cases registered against him in various police stations of Jharkhand and Bihar.

All five have been charged under various offences under the Indian Penal Code and Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act in the case, registered by NIA against nearly two dozen Naxal leaders.

Following the registration of the case, the NIA had conducted raids and investigations in various states affected by left-wing extremism. It collected significant evidence establishing the charges and also found that the accused had conspired to collect levy as well as procure arms and ammunition with the aim of reviving and strengthening the naxal organization and its activities. (ANI)

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NIA Chargesheets 4 Bangladeshis,1 Rohingya Among 24 In Assam Human Trafficking

By LokMarg 6th February 2024

The National Investigation Agency (NIA) has chargesheeted 24 operatives of international human trafficking syndicates involved in the trafficking of Bangladeshis and Rohingyas of Myanmar origin into the country with forged Indian identity documents for carrying out anti-national activities.

The chargesheeted accused include four Bangladesh nationals and one Rohingya of Myanmar origin.

The chargesheet was filed on Monday, before the NIA Special Court, Assam (Guwahati) under various provisions of IPC, Foreigners Act and Passport (Entry into India) Act, 1920 read with Rule Passport (Entry into India) Rules, 1950.

A total of 29 persons were initially arrested by the NIA in massive raids conducted across 39 locations in Tripura, Assam, Jammu Kashmir and West Bengal in coordination with the State police agencies.

A large number of incriminating documents, forged Indian identity documents, bank documents and digital devices were seized during the raids.

Subsequently, based on investigational leads, four more accused were apprehended from Tripura, taking the total number to 33.

The case was initially registered by Assam Police under the Passport Act 1967 against some anti-social elements, following credible inputs that the organised human trafficking syndicates were involved in trafficking Bangladeshi nationals and Rohingyas of Myanmar origin into India with forged documents for carrying out anti-India activities. The NIA subsequently took over the case and re-registered it.

Investigations by the NIA revealed that international human trafficking syndicates were active along the India-Bangladesh international border in Tripura, Assam, West Bengal and other areas. These syndicates were regularly trafficking Rohingyas and Bangladeshis, and preparing forged Indian identity documents to settle them in various parts of the country.

The network also had linkages with facilitators and traffickers operating in other parts of the country and across the border, as part of a larger network engaged in human trafficking activities through the India-Bangladesh border.

Investigations further revealed that the syndicates on both sides of the border conspired and offered inducements to obtain the consent of the trafficked individuals. The accused would prepare forged Indian identity documents, and also arrange bookings, shelters, transportation and their further travel to the hinterland, as per the investigational findings.

The traffickers exploited the victims and arranged their employment in various unorganised sectors on meagre earnings and settled them in different parts of the country.

The trafficked girls and women were exploited in various other forms by practising fraud and deception, with some Rohingya women also being sold to older men for marriage.

As per the investigations, Indian ID documents were obtained by Bangladeshi nationals in connivance with local bodies on fake or forged supporting documents and certificates furnished by local officials.(ANI)

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ISIS Terror Conspiracy: NIA Arrests 13 After Raids In Maharashtra, Karnataka

By LokMarg 9th December 2023

A total of 13 people were arrested in the ISIS terror conspiracy case from Maharashtra’s Pune on Saturday following searches by the National Investigation Agency (NIA) at 44 locations in Karnataka and Maharashtra.

The anti-terror agency sleuths raided these locations in close coordination with the police forces of Maharashtra and Karnataka, sources said.

Of the 44 locations being raided since this morning, the agency sleuths searched one place in Karnataka, two in Pune, 31 in Thane Rural, nine in Thane city, and one in Bhayander, they said.

The case pertains to a criminal conspiracy hatched by accused persons and their associates who had pledged to the violent extremist ideology of proscribed terrorist organizations, including Al-Qaeda and ISIS, and had formed a terrorist gang.

The terrorist organizations had recruited like-minded youth into their fold besides conducting religious classes to wage violent jihad to establish Islamic rule in India. (ANI)

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Shahnawaz Converted Wife To Islam, Did Mining Engineering: Special Cell

By LokMarg 2nd October 2023

The Special Cell of Delhi Police on Monday said that the suspected ISIS terrorist Shahnawaz, who has been arrested, converted his wife Basanti Patel to Islam adding that the NIA’s most wanted was a mining engineer from the prestigious Visvesvaraya Institute of Technology.

As per police, Shahnawaz was arrested from Jaitpur in South Delhi earlier today. Apart from him, two persons, also carrying bounty on their heads by the National Investigation Agency, were arrested.

Addressing a press briefing, Special Commissioner of Police (Special Cell) HS Dhaliwal, said, “Last month NIA declared award on three persons who have alleged involvement in blasts cases. Of them, Mohammad Shahnawaz, the main accused, has been arrested with his two associates– Mohammad Rizwan Ashraf and Mohammad Arshad Warsi.”

“Ashraf has been arrested from Lucknow, while Arshad was nabbed from Moradabad,” the police officer added.

Dhaliwal said that bomb-making literature, sent from Pakistan-based handlers, and other incriminating materials were recovered from Shahnawaz’s hideouts.

“Several explosives-making materials including, elementary, plastic tubes, and iron pipes, were recovered. (Apart from it) Pistol, cartridges, and bomb-making literature sent from Pak-based handlers, were (also) recovered,” the Special CP (Special Cell) said.

Police said that initial interrogation revealed that these people, conducted elaborate recce in Western Ghats, southern India, including Hubbali, Dharwad, and Ahmedabad in Gujarat to establish their hideouts.

While responding to media queries, Dhaliwal said, “Shahnawaz is a mining engineer from Visvesvaraya Institute of Technology. His wife, Basanti Patel, is converted to Islam and is now known as Mariam.”

According to police, the three wanted suspected terrorists were produced before the court earlier in the morning and have been sent to seven days of police custody.

Last month, the NIA released pictures of four terror suspects, including that of Shahnawaz, wanted in the Pune ISIS (Islamic State of Iraq and Syria) module case and declared a reward money of Rs 3 lakh each for credible information on them leading to their arrest. The agency has said that the identity of the informant will be kept confidential.

Shahnawaz was briefly caught by Pune Police on the intervening night of July 17-18 when he was trying to steal a motorcycle in the Kothrud area of Pune.

During investigation, it had come to light that a foreign-based handler had possibly put Shahnawaz in touch with two other terror operatives with instructions to execute a terror strike. (ANI)

10-Year-Jail To Accused Of Indian Mujahideen Conspiracy Case

By LokMarg 13th July 2023

A National Investigation Agency (NIA) Special Court here on Wednesday sentenced four persons to 10 years of imprisonment in the Indian Mujahideen (IM) conspiracy case relating to the plot hatched by Pak-backed terrorists to trigger bomb blasts across India.

The four accused were in close association with IM members, including Pakistan-based key accused Riyaz Bhatkal and Yasin Bhatkal, based in India.
The anti-terror agency said that the four accused had done recce of important places, including Hyderabad and Delhi, and had also procured explosives as well as arms and ammunition.

The accused, identified as Danish Ansari (Darbhanga, Bihar) Aftab Alam (Purnea, Bihar), Imran Khan (Nanded, Maharashtra) and Obaid-Ur-Rehman (Hyderabad, Telangana), were convicted on July 7, under Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act. They had been arrested between January and March 2013.

Under the sentence pronounced on Wednesday, the Special Judge also imposed fine of Rs 2,000 on accused Danish Ansari and Rs 10,000 on Aftab Alam.

The Special Court had earlier framed charges against the four, along with seven others, on March 31 this year. The other seven have been identified as Yasin Bhatkal, Asadullah Akhtar, Zia-Ur-Rehman, Tehsin Akhter and Hyder Ali. The trial against them is continue.

The case pertains to the conspiracy hatched by the members of the Indian Mujahideen, which is responsible for carrying out various blasts in the country, including Varanasi blasts of March 2006, Mumbai serial blasts of July 2006, UP courts serial blasts at Varanasi, Faizabad and Lucknow in November 2007, Hyderabad twin blasts of August 2007, besides the Jaipur serial blasts, Delhi serial blasts and the Ahmedabad serial blasts in 2008.

IM was also behind the Chinnaswamy, Bengaluru Stadium blast of 2010 and the Hyderabad twin blasts of 2013, said the NIA. (ANI)

Pak-Sponsored Narco-Terror: NIA Attaches House Of Two Brothers In Punjab

By LokMarg 4th July 2023

The National Investigation Agency (NIA) has attached Punjab’s Amritsar-based house of two brothers accused in a Pakistan-sponsored narco-terror case being probed by the agency since 2020, the agency said on Tuesday.

The residential property belongs to Bikramjit Singh alias Bikram Singh alias Vicky and Maninder Singh alias Mani. The property has been attached under section 25(1) of the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act 1967 after its designation as ‘proceeds of terrorism’, said the NIA.
The two brothers were earlier arrested by the NIA in the case, which relates to a conspiracy hatched by a narco terror module to smuggle large quantities of drugs into India from Pakistan.

“The drugs were being smuggled in the garb of rock salt imported from across the border. The sale proceeds of the smuggled drugs were being used to create movable and immovable properties in Punjab, besides being channelized to fund terrorists of Hizb-ul-Mujahideen in the Kashmir Valley,” said the anti-terror agency.

The NIA had earlier also attached some land, measuring 60 Kanal 10 Marla, in the instant case. Six vehicles and Rs 6,35,000 in cash were also seized.

The agency, which registered the case on May 8, 2020, has filed four chargesheets (including three supplementary) against 13 accused under the relevant sections of the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, Narcotics-Drug and Psychotropic Substances Act, and Indian Penal Code in the case. (ANI)