ISIS-style outfit was preparing for attacks in Delhi: NIA

On receipt of credible information that a group of pro-ISIS individuals had formed a terrorist gang and were preparing to carry out terrorist attacks in and around Delhi/NCR, the NIA, on December 20, against the mastermind of the module, the agency said, adding that the inputs were further developed and field verifications were done.

"It was ascertained that Mufti Mohd. Suhail @ Hazrath and his associates have mobilised funds and have procured weapons, ammunition and explosive material to prepare IEDs and bombs and they plan to carry out explosions and fidayeen attacks at places of importance in & around Delhi and also target crowded places," it added.

Consequently, the NIA carried out searches at six places in Jafrabad, Seelampur, Delhi and 11 places in Uttar Pradesh - six in Amroha, two in Lucknow, two in Hapur and one in Meerut - and seized huge quantities of explosive material, arms and ammunition, other incriminating material and documents.

"The seized items include 25 kg of explosive material, such as Potassium Nitrate, Ammonium Nitrate, Sulphur, Sugar material paste, 12 pistols, 150 rounds of live ammunition, 1 country- made rocket launcher, 112 alarm clocks, mobile phone circuits, batteries, 51 pipes, remote control car triggering switch, wireless digital doorbell for remote switch, steel containers, electric wires, 91 mobile phones, 134 SIM cards, 3 laptops, knife, sword, ISIS-related literature and a cash amount of Rs. 7.5 lakh approximately," the NIA said in a statement.

Speaking to reporters, senior NIA officer Alok Mittal said: "They weren’t just making some bombs but a large number of bombs."

He said: "All of them seem to be highly radicalised."

Mittal said security officials seized over 100 alarm clocks and over 25 kg of chemicals used to make remote control pipe bombs from the arrested people.

The following persons have been arrested:

i) Mufti Mohd. Suhail@Hazrath, s/o Hafeez Ahmad, 29 years, native of Amroha and working as Mufti in a Madrasa at Hakim Mahtab Uddin Hashmi Road, Amroha, UP. He was presently staying at Jaffrabad, Delhi, and had tasked other team members to procure arms, explosives and other accessories to prepare IED’s and pipe-bombs.

ii) Anas Yunus, s/o Mohd. Younus, 24 years, r/o Jafrabad, Delhi. He is pursuing Civil Engineering at a University in,Noida. He was instrumental in procuring electrical items, alarm clocks & batteries etc . In furtherance of their terror conspiracy.

iii) Rashid Zafar Raq@ Zafar s/o Iqbal Ahmad, 23 years, r/o Jafrabad, Delhi. He is into garments business.

iv) Saeed@ Sayeed s/o Habeeb, 28 years, r/o Saidapur Imma, Amroha, UP and has a welding shop in Amroha.

v) Raees Ahmad S/o Habeeb and brother of Said @ Sayeed, r/o Saidapur Imma, Amroha, UP and has a karkhana (welding shop) at IslamNagar, Near Idgah, Amroha, Uttar Pradesh. The two brothers Saeed and Raeeshad procured a huge quantity of explosive material/gun powder (approx.25 kg) for preparing IED’s and pipe bombs and were instrumental in fabricating a rocket launcher to carry out terrorist attacks.

vi) Zubair Malik s/o Gulzar Ahmad, 20 years, r/o Jaffrabad, Delhi, studying in B.A 3rd year at a University in Delhi.

vii) Zaid Malik, s/o Gulzar Ahmad and brother of Zabair Malik, 22 years, r/o Jaffrabad, Delhi. Both the brothers i.e. Zaid & Zubair were part of the terror conspiracy and were instrumental in procuring batteries, connectors, SIM cards on fakedocumentsandmobilising funds for buying bomb -making material.

viii) Saqib Iftekar s/o Iftekar,26 r/o Vait, PO Simbhaoli, Hapur, Uttar Pradesh and working as Imam in Jama Masjid, Baksar, Uttar Pradesh. He helped the master-mind Mufti Mohd. Suhail in procuring weapons.

ix) Mohd. Irshad s/o Ishtiyak, r/o Mohalla Qazi Zada, Amroha, Uttar Pradesh. He is an auto-rickshaw driver and was helping Mohd. Suhail in arranging a hide-out for keeping the material for making IED’s and bombs.

x) Mohd. Azam s/o Hafiz Ahmad, 35 years, r/o Chauhan Bajar, Gashi Mendu, Delhi. He runs a medical shop in Seelampur, Shahdara, Delhi and helped the mastermind in arranging weapons.

Apart from these accused, some other suspects are being examined. The arrested accused would be produced before the NIA Special Court, Patiala Court House, New Delhi, on Thursday. Further investigation is on.