In a major crackdown in the ‘I love Muhammad’ row, the Uttar Pradesh Anti-Terrorism squad (ATS) has arrested four terror suspects, identified as Akmal Raza, Safeel Salmani alias Ali Razvi, Mohd Tausif, and Kasim Ali, on Monday. The radical extremists were tracked down from different locations across the state on allegations of plotting to ‘topple the government through violent jihad and to enforce Sharia law.’
The Uttar Pradesh ATS, in a release, said that the suspects formed a Mujahideen Army, intending to establish a Sharia system. The Anti-Terrorism Squad said that it received intelligence that some people, influenced by radical Pakistani organizations, “were planning to overthrow the democratically elected government in India through violent jihad and impose Sharia law through force.”
The arrested accused held various meetings at different locations and actively engaged in multiple social media groups. They provoked people via videos and audio chats with the motive to collect funds to procure weapons and other materials intended for use in terrorist acts. These groups also planned to target non-Muslim religious leaders and kill them.
Preliminary investigations revealed that the suspects were radicalizing and uniting those with a similar mindset to initiate a war against infidels by ‘compiling, writing, and disseminating various violent jihadist literature.’
UP ATS recovered five mobile phones, Aadhaar card, PAN card, ATM debit/credit card, and PhonePe scanner from the arrested individuals. They will be produced before the Court soon, following which legal action will be taken.
