The accused were produced before the chamber of the Metropolitan Sessions Judge by the NIA amidst heavy security. The judge remanded them to judicial custody, though the investigating agency has filed an application, seeking their police custody for further examination.
The NIA’s application for police custody is likely to come up for hearing on Friday. The accused were later shifted to the Cherlapally Central Prison.
Mohammed Ibrahim Yazdani alias Ibbu, Habeeb Mohammed alias Sir, Mohammed Ilyas Yazdani, Abdullah Bin Ahmed Al Amoodi and Muzaffar Hussain Rizwan were arrested by the NIA after a series of searches were conducted at 10 locations in Old City area, with the assistance of the Hyderabad Police. The agency had detained six others, including a techie, during the operation.
According to the NIA, the preliminary examination has revealed that the gang was preparing IEDs to carry out terror acts and were being guided by an online handler suspected to be based in Iraq/Syria.
The NIA had earlier registered a case based on credible information that some youths hailing from Hyderabad and their accomplices have entered into a criminal conspiracy to wage war against the Government of India by collecting weapons and explosive materials by targeting public places, including religious sites and sensitive government buildings and others in various parts of the country.