NIA Raids 20 Locations Including Hyderabad in Online Terror Radicalisation Case

The National Investigation Agency (NIA) on Wednesday conducted nationwide searches across 20 locations, including Saidabad in Hyderabad and Vijayawada in Andhra Pradesh, in connection with an online terror radicalisation case. The coordinated raids are part of an ongoing investigation into an alleged conspiracy to establish an Islamic state in India through violent jihad against the democratically elected government, promoting the ideologies of the banned terrorist organisations ISIS and AQIS.

The searches, which spanned ten states and union territories, led to the seizure of several digital devices. These devices will undergo forensic examination to uncover further clues regarding the radicalisation conspiracy. The states targeted in the coordinated action included Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Karnataka, Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal, Bihar, Rajasthan, Gujarat, and Delhi.

So far, 11 individuals, including a woman from Saidabad in Hyderabad, and one juvenile have been arrested in connection with the case.

The case was originally registered by the Vijayawada Police in March after a search at the residence of the key accused, Rehmatullah Sharif Mohammad, led to the recovery of incriminating materials related to AQIS and ISIS. The NIA officially took over the investigation from the Vijayawada Police in May.

According to the NIA, the locations searched on Wednesday were selected based on a detailed technical analysis of previously seized digital devices, alongside connectivity analysis of the arrested accused and other investigative findings.

The agency's probe revealed that the arrested accused and their associates were actively engaged in the indoctrination of vulnerable youth across the country through violent jihadi content and misinformation. The NIA, which is working to identify others involved in the plot to destabilise the country and establish a 'Caliphate', stated that the accused were also in online contact with foreign handlers to propagate their ideology and advance the anti-India conspiracy.