Six youngsters have been arrested from Kerala by the National Investigation Agency on suspicion of carrying out an ‘IS-inspired module’ in Kerala and Tamil Nadu. They were reportedly planning to attack various places in India after owning allegiance to the so called caliphate led by Abu-Bakr al-Baghdadi.As per the NIA officials, the accused were collecting explosive to give shape to their plans.
Earlier this year, 21 persons including 6 women and three children from Kerala went ‘missing’ and were later traced to Afghanistan on conformation of having joined the ISIS.
A senior NIA officer said, “Credible information was received that some youth from Kerala and Tamil Nadu along with their accomplices have entered into a criminal conspiracy to commit terrorist acts by collecting explosives and other offensive material for targeting important persons and places of public importance in various parts of south lndia.”
Officials say that NIA teams along with Kerala Police, Delhi Police and Telangana Police, based on specific information, launched surveillance on the movements of the accused involved in the conspiracy.
Those arrested have been identified as Manseed alias Omar Al Hindi (30), a resident of Kannur, Abu Basheer alias Rashid (29) from Coimbatore, Swalih Mohammed T alias Yousuf (26) from Thrissur, Safwan P (30) from Mallapuram Kerala, Jasim NK (25) alias Kozhikode and Ramshad Nageelan Kandiyil alias Aaamu (24) from Kozhikode.
