Guwahati (Assam) [India], December 21 (HBTV): Eight members of Ansarullah Bangla Team (ABT), an affiliate of Al-Qaeda in the Indian Subcontinent (AQIS), who were arrested yesterday by the Special Task Force (STF) of Assam police, have been sent to police custody for 10 days by a Guwahati court on Friday.

Partha Sarathi Mahanta, IGP (STF), told ANI that the court sent them for 10 days' police custody. 'All arrested 8 accused were produced before the court yesterday (December 19) and they have been remanded to 10 days' police custody. We also seized 4 pen drives and other incriminating documents which we are analysing. Among the 8 arrested persons, one is a Bangladeshi national. All follow-up actions are underway,' Mahanta said.

The Assam STF Chief also mentioned that the Bangladeshi national identified as 36-year-old Md. Sad Radi alias Shab Seikh, a resident of Rajshahi, Bangladesh, had entered India in November 2024 to spread their ideology and create sleeper cells across India to initiate violent and subversive actions. 'Md. Sad Radi visited Assam and West Bengal to meet sleeper-cell activists of the banned Ansarullah Bangla Team (ABT), before he moved to Kerala for the same purpose. Assam STF arrested him from Kerala with the help of Kerala police. Two other persons named Minarul Sheikh (40) and Md. Abbas Ali (33) were arrested from West Bengal with the help of West Bengal police. On the other hand, five others were arrested from Kokrajhar and Dhubri district of Assam,' Mahanta explained.

The STF Assam lodged an FIR under several sections, including the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, 1967, and launched 'Operation - Praghat,' under the direct supervision of STF Chief, Dr. Partha Sarathi Mahanta. Teams were dispatched to various parts of the country to identify and apprehend jihadi elements. During the night of December 17-18, 2024, simultaneous search and seizure operations were conducted across Kerala, West Bengal, and Assam, resulting in the arrest of eight individuals.

The incriminating documents, mobile phones, and technical evidence seized indicate continuous communication between the arrested individuals and entities in Bangladesh and Pakistan over the past couple of months. 'Significant revelations have come to light that the module was working to establish sleeper cells across the country, particularly in Assam and West Bengal. These cells were intended for subversive and violent activities that would disrupt peace, and cause destruction of life and property,' Mahanta said.

The arrested individuals played a pivotal role in aiding Md. Sad Radi's mission to recruit and indoctrinate individuals who shared fundamentalist/jihadi ideologies, aiming to exploit local vulnerabilities and religious sentiments to create a covert network loyal to their broader objectives.   

(ANI)