New Delhi : An Islamic State (IS) inspired nationwide module in India tried to contact Maoists for “seeking shelter” after carrying out “violent acts” that it was planning across the country, interrogations have revealed after 25 youths were arrested. The suspects said they were also trying to obtain arms and ammunition with the help of Maoists, officials .
One of the arrested suspects, Mohammad Azhar, told the investigators that he made two failed attempts to contact Maoists in 2015. A native of Bhopal, Azhar was arrested by the National Investigation Agency (NIA) in February this year. He is suspected to be part of Junood-al-Khalifa-e-Hind, set up by Syria-based Shafi Armar, who has pledged allegiance to ISIS chief Abu-Bakr-al Baghdadi. According to NIA, Azhar was pursuing ‘Alim’ course at Deobandi fountainhead, Darul Uloom madarsa since 2009, after his father expressed desire that one of his sons become a ‘maulana’. Azhar first instructed Mehtaab and Amjad in August 2015 to go to Maoist areas to get information about the activities of the Left-wing extremists and the place where they could take shelter after violent activities in India, officials said.
The probe revealed Mehtaab took admission at a madarsa at Bijapur in Chhattisgarh but failed to establish any links with Maoists. The group, as per investigators, was inspired by the strategies of Maoists and tried to locate a jungle or an isolated place as its hideout.
Source : Economic Times
