The Bengaluru city crime branch (CCB), on Wednesday, arrested five persons suspected of hatching a conspiracy to carry out terror attacks in the city. The CCB police, based on credible information, arrested the suspects – Suhail, Umar, Zahid, Mudasir and Faisal, from a house in Kanakanagar (Sultanpalya) in the Hebbal police station limits and also recovered seven country made pistols, 42 live bullets, walkie talkie sets, 12 mobile phones and two daggers and modern communication devices.
Bengaluru city police commissioner B. Dayananda, during a press meet, said, “The CCB police has been successful in pre-empting and preventing a possible subversive activity in Bengaluru city. During preliminary investigation it was revealed that the accused had planned to carry out subversive activities The main accused Junaid is now absconding and is likely to be abroad. Junaid, an accused in the murder of one Noor Ahmad of RT Nagar, came in contact with alleged terrorist T Nazeer, who is an accused in the 2008 serial blast case. The duo radicalised the five accused in the Bengaluru (Parappana Agrahara) central jail. The five accused has spent 18 months in jail in the Noor Ahmad murder case. Junaid activated the terror module, provided funds through Google Pay and other channels and also equipment, to carry out subversive activities,” informed the commissioner.
A case has been registered in Hebbal police station and the accused have been taken into police custody for 15 days. “We have invoked Unlawful Activities Prevention Act (UAPA) and are investigating to ascertain the possible involvement of anti-national and anti-social elements and the motive and magnitude of their gameplan. We have formed a special team to investigate into the case and are in touch with central investigating agencies too,” said the commissioner.
The police also confirmed that Junaid and his 20 accomplices had kidnapped a rival Noor Ahmad and hacked him to death in 2017. The radicalisation of the local rowdysheeters happened when they were all lodged in the Parappana Agrahara jail. All the accused are residents of Bengaluru and are in the age group of 25-35 years.
“In 2020, Junaid had again landed in jail in another (red sanders) case and come in contact with Nazeer, who has links with Lashkar-e-Toiba (LeT) and is an accused in 19 cases including the 2008 Kozhikode serial bomb blast case. Only further interrogation would reveal their possible links with other terror outfits and modules,” added Dayanand.
The arrests have once again exposed the sorry state of vigilance inside the prisons as many instances of criminals being radicalised inside the prisons are now being reported. To a question on prisons turning into safe havens for radicalisation, the commissioner said, “Prison is a place where all the criminals meet and naturally there is exchange of information and ideas. One person can radicalise many. However, we can keep stricter watch and observe and conduct prison raids from time to time,” admitted the commissioner.