Bangladeshi man gets 7 years in jail for planning terror activities

As per records, the accused was identified as Samad Mia (26) alias Tanvir alias Saifur alias Tusar Biswas and was a Bangladeshi resident. He was charged under section 120 B (criminal conspiracy), 121 A (Conspiracy to commit offences punishable by section), 125 (Waging war against any Asiatic Power), 468 (forgery for purpose of cheating), 471 (using as genuine a forged document) of the Indian Penal Code and under various sections of the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act and the Foreigners Act. He was also fined Rs 16,000.

On November 21, 2017, the Special Task Force unit of Kolkata police arrested five members of ABT, including Mia, in the city for allegedly conspiring to carry out terror activities in India. While four of the accused were Bangladeshi nationals one was an Indian citizen.

“The NIA had taken over the investigation of the case in 2018 and established that the Bangladeshi members of ABT had entered India in 2016. The accused persons had lived in Hyderabad, Pune and Mumbai as labourers and tried to procure hazardous chemicals from a shop in Patna. They had also tried to procure arms and ammunition in Kolkata and establish hide-outs in Ranchi,” said an official. After the investigation, the five accused were charge-sheeted by the NIA. “Earlier, only three of the accused persons were convicted by the Special NIA Court in Kolkata,” the official added.

The accused allegedly tried to procure arms and ammunition in Kolkata and several incriminating materials like a map of Sealdah Railway Station, Howrah Bridge and information about explosives and making bombs. The STF had also seized fake Aadhaar and PAN cards from their possession.