NEW DELHI: Delhi Police’s Special Cell, Jharkhand Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS), and Ranchi police have arrested two suspected ISIS operatives in a joint operation spread across different states, an official said on Wednesday.
The prime accused, identified as Bokaro native Ashar Danish, was arrested in Ranchi, the official said. Danish was wanted in a case registered by the Delhi Police Special Cell related to an ISIS-linked module. Another suspect, Aftab, was apprehended from Delhi during coordinated action carried out simultaneously by the teams, according to police.
According to a source involved in the operation, at least eight more people have been detained from different states, and the joint party is investigating their roles.
“Preliminary investigation suggests that both who were arrested were in touch with other members of a terror-module network and were engaged in activities aimed at furthering the terror outfit’s agenda in India,” the source said. Danish had been on the radar of security agencies for several months.
Earlier in the day, Jharkhand Police IG (Operations) Michael Raj S said, “The joint operation of Delhi and Jharkhand police is being conducted at several places, including a hostel in Ranchi. Some people linked to terrorist organisations have been detained, and interrogation is going on.” Another official said several electronic devices were seized from Danish and Aftab, and Danish will be brought to Delhi for further questioning.
The Special Cell also busted an espionage module linked to Pakistan’s Inter Services Intelligence (ISI) on Tuesday with the arrest of a 43-year-old man accused of supplying SIM cards that were later used by operatives across the border. MPOST