Two men were arrested in Noida on Thursday for allegedly working with Pakistani handlers, including from the ISI, as well as some gangsters and “radical YouTubers” of the neighbouring country. The Uttar Pradesh Anti-Terrorist Squad (ATS) investigating the presence of Pakistani sleeper cells created through social media found that two men, one from Meerut and another from Delhi, were allegedly in direct contact with Pakistani operatives and “planning a major disruptive act”.
Additional Director General of Police (Law and Order) Amitabh Yash said that ATS had initiated a probe following intelligence inputs regarding sleeper cells created through Instagram and other social media platforms.
During the investigation, it emerged that Pakistani gangster Shahzad Bhatti, Abid Jatt and radical Pakistani YouTubers, allegedly acting on instructions from the ISI, were attempting to radicalise Indian youths and entice them with financial incentives to disturb internal peace and communal harmony, he said in a statement.
“They were encouraging Indian youths to conduct reconnaissance of sensitive locations and carry out terrorist attacks as per their directions. They were also instigating them to target certain individuals who had left Islam, using sophisticated weapons,” he said.
According to the probe, Meerut resident Tushar Chauhan alias Hizbullah Ali Khan and Delhi resident Sameer Khan had come under the influence of the network.
A team of the ATS arrested the duo from Noida on Thursday. A pistol, five cartridges and a knife were recovered from their possession, the officer said.
During preliminary interrogation, Chauhan allegedly confessed that he had come in contact with Pakistani gangster Shahzad Bhatti and Abid Jatt through Instagram, and later communicated with them via voice and video push-to-talk calls.
Modus operandi and promised incentives
To gain Bhatti’s trust, Chauhan allegedly created Instagram accounts in his name, one of which was blocked, after which he made another account and obtained Bhatti’s phone number to establish direct contact, Yash said.He further said Bhatti had allegedly asked Chauhan to carry out grenade attacks on targeted individuals and assured him that sophisticated weapons would be provided. Chauhan was promised Rs 50,000 in advance and Rs 2.5 lakh after completing the task, along with an offer to facilitate travel to Pakistan via Dubai, the officer added.
According to the ADG, Chauhan also claimed that Bhatti had mentioned that three ISI agents would assign targets.
Tasks assigned to the accused
Police said that interrogation also revealed that Sameer Khan communicated with Bhatti through social media and had allegedly been tasked with writing “Tehreek-e-Taliban Hindustan” on walls and recruiting more individuals, police said.Chauhan had contacted Sameer through Instagram, and both were allegedly preparing to carry out activities as directed by their handlers, including reconnaissance of targets, Yash said.
The officer added that the accused had also issued death threats to certain individuals at the behest of Bhatti and Jatt, with Pakistani handlers joining some of the calls via conference.
A case has been registered against both accused under relevant sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, the Arms Act and the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, he said.
Police will seek custody remand of the accused to gather further information about their associates and the wider network, he added.
The Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, under which the accused have been charged, is India’s primary anti-terrorism legislation, empowering authorities to designate individuals and organisations as terrorists.
The Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita is the new penal code of India, replacing the Indian Penal Code. Further investigation will focus on uncovering the full extent of the network and identifying other potential collaborators.
