NIA arrested IS suspect from Batla House, family denies charges
The National Investigation Agency (NIA) arrested an engineering student from New Delhi's Batla House on suspicion of being an active member of the Islamic State (IS), as per The Indian Express. The accused has been identified as Mohsin Ahmed, a permanent resident of Patna. Ahmed was detained on Saturday following searches at his home and elsewhere. Meanwhile, his family has firmly dismissed the charges.
What did NIA say?
"Accused Mohsin Ahmed is a radicalized and active member of IS. He has been arrested for his involvement in the collection of funds for ISIS from sympathizers in India as well as abroad," NIA said in a statement on Sunday. "He was sending these funds to Syria and other places in form of cryptocurrency in order to further the activities of IS," it said.
Raids conducted in seven states in two separate cases
Officials said the NIA conducted raids at 13 locations across six states last Sunday in the case including Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat, Bihar, Karnataka, Maharashtra, and Uttar Pradesh. The raids were also carried out in Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala the same day but in a separate case. The searches in both cases resulted in the recovery of "incriminating documents/material," officials added.
NIA had alleged conspiracy angle
According to the NIA, the accused had hatched a conspiracy for threatening the general public and police officials. It said the accused persons were also involved in inciting hatred for the secession of a part of India. "They had intended to disrupt the sovereignty and territorial integrity of India," the NIA had said in a statement.
Case earlier registered by Tamil Nadu Police
NIA had further said the accused formed outfits like "Khilafah Party of India", "Khilafah Front of India", and "Intellectual Students of India (ISI)" and associated themselves with ISIS and Al Qaeda. The searches led to the seizure of digital devices and incriminating documents. Notably, the case was earlier registered by Tamil Nadu Police and later taken over by the NIA this year.
Ahmed's family denies allegation
Meanwhile, Ahmed's family rubbished the charges and said they will approach the court. "If he was raising funds, he should have had lots of money. The day before yesterday, he messaged me to ask for Rs. 4,000 to do a coding course," his sister told NDTV. However, she said her brother would do social service, collecting donations and distributing food among the poor.
'Will challenge the allegation in the court'
"The allegations are totally false, we will challenge them in court. He may not even have understood what he was doing. My brother is very naive and gullible. I don't think he knew what ISIS was," she added.
