NIA searches houses in Bengaluru, Mangaluru; one held from Ullal

BENGALURU/ MANGALURU: The National Investigation Agency and state police arrested four people on Wednesday after simultaneous searches at five locations across India, including three in Kashmir, Bengaluru and Mangaluru. Among the arrested, one from Ullal is learnt to be the relative of a former MLA.
NIA registered suo motu case against seven known and other unknown accused under sections of IPC and and UA (P) Act on March 5 pertaining to alleged terrorist activities of Mohammed Ameen alias Abu Yahya of Kerala and his associates. They have been accused of running Islamic State propaganda channels on social media platforms such as Telegram, Hoop and Instagram to propagate violent Jihadi ideology and radicalise and recruit members. The agency conducted searches and arrested three persons — Mohd. Ameen, Dr Rahees Rasheed and Mus’Hab Anwar — in this case in March.
Investigation revealed that after the decline of the IS Caliphate in Syria/Iraq, Mohd. Ameen visited Kashmir in March 2020 for hijrah (religious migration) and for terrorist acts. He raised funds in association with Kashmir-based accused Mohammad Waqar Lone alias Wilson Kashmiri and his associates. As part of the conspiracy, funds were also transferred to Mohd. Waqar Lone by the accused through banking channels and digital payment methods on the directions of Mohd. Ameen, sleuths aid.
Mohd. Ameen and his associates were radicalising youths to join jihad and unlawful activities in India and had expanded the network in Kashmir and parts of Kerala and Kar nataka.
Searches were conducted at the premises of the accused who were in touch with Ameen and aides. Several digital devices including laptops, mobile phones, hard disk drives, pen drives, SIM cards of different service providers and documents were seized. The arrested are Obaid Hamid from Srinagar, Muzammil Hassan Bhat from Kashmir, Ammar Abdul Rahman from Ullale and Shankar Venkatesh Perumal @ Ali Muaviya from Bengaluru.