NIA files chargesheet against five in Al-Qaeda conspiracy case

New Delhi [India], November 10 : The National Investigation Agency (NIA) on Friday filed a comprehensive chargesheet against five accused individuals in the Al-Qaeda conspiracy case.
The agency filed the chargesheet in a special NIA court in Gujarat's Ahmedabad against Mohd Sojib Miyan, Munna Khan, Jahangir alias Ajharul Islam, Abdul Latif, and Farid.
The agency said its investigations have unravelled a meticulously planned conspiracy orchestrated by Al-Qaida operatives based across the India-Bangladesh border in collaboration with the arrested individuals, aimed at carrying out terrorist acts and activities in India.
Acting on credible inputs, the Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS) in Ahmedabad got input that four terrorists had illegally infiltrated India through the India-Bangladesh border by using forged and fraudulent identity documents.
The ATS investigations further revealed that these individuals were associated with the proscribed terrorist organisation Al-Qaida and were engaging in activities such as fundraising and recruitment of Muslim youth to join the terrorist ranks.
Considering the national security implications and international linkages, the Ministry of Home Affairs transferred the case to the NIA on June 19. The NIA registered a case on June 22 under sections 38, 39 and 40 of the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, 1967; sections 14(a) and 14(b) of the Foreigners Act, 1946; and sections 465, 466, and 471 of the Indian Penal Code arising out of the case earlier registered by ATS Ahmedabad on May 21 this year.
Investigations revealed that the accused, namely Mohd Sojibmiyan, Munna Khalid Ansari alias Munna Khan, Azarul Islam alias Jahangir alias Aakash Khan, and Abdul Latif alias Mominul Ansari, were all foreign nationals who had infiltrated India illegally.
"They procured forged documents to operate covertly within the country and advance their terrorist agenda," said the NIA.
"Their actions were not limited to illegal entry. They were actively engaged in motivating, radicalising, and indoctrinating vulnerable Muslim youth in India in the extremist ideology of Al-Qaida and collection of funds and transferring them to the handlers and agents of proscribed terrorist organisation Al Qaida based on both sides of the border."
Investigations uncovered that two absconding accused, Shariful Islam and Sahiba, are members of the proscribed terrorist organisation Al-Qaida and are believed to be key handlers of the arrested individuals from across the border, it said.
Acting on the explicit directives of these handlers, the NIA said the accused infiltrated India through illegal means, subsequently procuring forged documents to settle in India and operate discreetly in the furtherance of terrorist activities on Indian soil.
"They provided comprehensive training, including the use of covert communication applications, to evade detection and ensure the secrecy and anonymity of their activities. Furthermore, these handlers were instrumental in the radicalization and motivation of vulnerable Muslim youth in India," said the anti-terror agency.
The in-depth investigations by the NIA have established that foreign citizens illegally infiltrate India, obtain fake ID cards and documents, get jobs, and covertly carry out activities on behalf of foreign terror organisations such as Al-Qaeda in the form of sleeper cells.
During the investigations, the agency said, many foreign agents were identified who had quietly settled in different parts of India with fake identity documents and they provided safe passage to other illegal infiltrators, harbouring them and providing them with Indian identity documents.