Lucknow, Mar 17: The Uttar Pradesh Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS) has carried out a major operation and arrested a 19-year-old dental student who was in touch with the banned terror outfit ‘ISIS’, officials said.
The accused has been identified as Harish Ali, a resident of Saharanpur district. He was arrested by the Uttar Pradesh Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS) in Moradabad on charges of having links with the online module of the banned terror outfit ISIS.
He was arrested during an ongoing investigation into the activities of ISIS-linked online networks operating in India. The second-year BDS student was said to be in touch with ISIS administrators through social media platforms like Instagram and encrypted applications like Discord, officials said.
He was running a separate group called ‘Al Ittihad Media Foundation’, through which he was allegedly propagating ISIS ideologies and sharing extremist literature on the establishment of an Islamic caliphate.
Using a virtual private network (VPN), Harris, who was hiding his identity, was trying to strengthen the organization in India and attract like-minded youth to join militant activities.
Some people in Uttar Pradesh and other parts of the country are creating online groups to propagate the ideology of ISIS, which aims to establish a Sharia-based caliphate system. Intelligence inputs have warned that people are being recruited to strengthen the terrorist organization in India.
A case has been registered at the ATS police station in Lucknow under relevant sections of the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act and BNS. The accused had changed their names to recruit like-minded people and spread propaganda about ISIS.