ISIS operative gets life term for plotting attack on foreigners in Kolkata

Musa, a resident of Labhpur in West Bengal’s Birbhum district, was arrested on July 4, 2016, from the Burdwan railway station by the state police’s CID wing for allegedly radicalising youth to join the ISIS before the National Investigation Agency too over the probe in the case. Chief Judge Siddhartha Kanjilal found him guilty of conspiring to wage a war against the Indian government and recruiting and collecting weapons for the purpose.

NIA counsel Shyamal Ghosh prayed for imprisonment to him.

The central agency had filed a chargesheet against Musa on December 23, 2016, in the Bankshall court, accusing him of planning to attack foreigners frequently visiting the Mother House, the headquarters of the Missionaries of Charity, in Kolkata’s Mullick Bazar area.

The attack was planned against British, American, Russian tourists as revenge against bombings in Syria and Libya. According to the NIA, Musa during interrogation revealed that he had visited Mother House before carrying out an attack. He was charged under Sections 121 (waging or attempting to wage war, or abetting waging of war against the Government of India), 121-A (conspiracy to commit offences punishable by Section 121), 122 (collecting arms etc to wage war against the government), 123 (concealing with intent to facilitate design to wage war) of the Indian Penal Code and Sections 16 (punishment for terrorist act), 18 (any act preparatory to the commission of a terrorist act) and 20 (punishment for being a member of terrorist organisation) of Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act.

Musa was also interrogated by American agency Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and the Bangladesh’s Rapid Action Battalion. While the FBI had interrogated him about the ISIS plans to attack foreigners in South Asian countries, the RAB questioned him over his links with Holey Artisan Bakery attack in Dhaka.

After his arrest, police had recovered a 13 inch knife, .38 bore six-chamber revolver, three rounds of ammunition, a knife, a mobile phone and other incriminating articles. During investigation, it was found that he was in contact with ISIS modules in Syria, Afghanistan and Bangladesh through email and other mediums on the internet.

It was also found that he used to discuss his plans with his handlers through a mobile app.

He is believed to be in touch with Abu Sulaiman, an ISIS operative and alleged mastermind of the Dhaka bakery attack and Indian suspected Mujahideen member Safi Omar. He was also likely to be in contact with members of the Jamaat-e-Mujahideen, a banned terrorist organisation in Bangladesh.