The National Investigation Agency (NIA) has arrested Mohammad Shahnawaz Alam, an accused in the Pune ISIS module case in which seven persons were earlier held.
Alam, a resident of Katkamsandi in Jharkhand’s Hazaribagh, had escaped from the custody of the Pune police on July 19 after he was arrested along with Mohammed Imran Khan and Mohammed Yunus Saki for allegedly attempting to steal a motorcycle.
“Subsequently, it came to light that they were active ISIS operatives. Further, NIA had declared a reward of ₹3 lakh for information leading to the capture of Shahnawaz Alam,” said the NIA on Thursday.
According to the NIA, the accused was directly associated with the other arrested individuals in the Pune ISIS module case. Investigations revealed that he allegedly played an active role in the reconnaissance of various locations intended for use as hideouts, as well as in the conduct of weapon firing classes and training in the fabrication of Improvised Explosive Devices.
“The accused persons had plans to commit terrorist acts, with the aim to disturb peace and communal harmony of the country in furtherance of the ISIS agenda,” said the agency.
It alleged that ISIS, also known as Islamic State, Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant, Daish, Islamic State in Khorasan Province, ISIS Wilayat Khorasan, and Islamic State of Iraq and the Sham Khorasan, had been actively pursuing an anti-India agenda and spreading terror and violence across the country.
