ISI shifts terror focus to south India as security tightens in Kashmir, north
Synopsis
Pakistan's ISI has pivoted its terror strategy toward southern India, with the Kashmir Study Group advising it to tap into Al Qaeda and Islamic State-radicalised networks already entrenched in Kerala, Karnataka, and Tamil Nadu. The shift follows the dismantling of northern India modules and the post-Operation Sindoor pressure on Pakistani handlers to conceal their hand — signalling a calculated escalation in the ISI's pan-India ambitions.
Key Takeaways
Pakistan's ISI , on advice from the Kashmir Study Group (KSG) , is reportedly shifting its terror recruitment focus toward Kerala , Karnataka , and Tamil Nadu .
The KSG was set up after the abrogation of Article 370 in 2019 and is led by officers at the level of Brigadier and Colonel .
A recruitment network in northern India linked to Shahzad Bhatti , built via social media after the Red Fort car bomb blast , was recently dismantled.
Intelligence Bureau officials say Al Qaeda and the Islamic State have already radicalised networks in southern India, lowering the barrier for ISI recruitment.
Following Operation Sindoor , Pakistani handlers are reportedly under increased pressure to conceal involvement through overseas intermediaries.
Officials describe the move as part of a broader pan-India strategy , not merely a temporary tactical diversion.
Pakistan's Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) has expanded its tactical focus toward southern India on the recommendation of its internal advisory body, the Kashmir Study Group (KSG), seeking to exploit pre-existing radicalised networks in Kerala, Karnataka, and Tamil Nadu as security grids tighten across Jammu and Kashmir and northern India, according to intelligence officials.
What the Kashmir Study Group Is and How It Operates
The KSG was established following the abrogation of Article 370 in 2019 and is currently led by high-ranking Pakistani military officers at the level of Brigadier and Colonel. Initially tasked with advising the Pakistani establishment on Jammu and Kashmir, its mandate has reportedly expanded over the past two to three years to cover other parts of India. In its latest assessment, the KSG is understood to have advised the ISI to explore recruiting radicalised individuals in southern states.
'The KSG had earlier recommended proxy organisations, including The Resistance Front (TRF), the People's Anti-Fascist Front (PAFF), Kashmir Tigers and Allah Tigers. These groups were created to provide both the Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) and Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM) with a degree of deniability,' an official said.
Northern Networks Disrupted, Strategy Recalibrated
Officials noted that heightened security in Jammu and Kashmir has made it significantly harder for terror groups to operate in the north. Following the Red Fort car bomb blast in Delhi last year, the ISI — acting on KSG advice — recruited an individual identified as Shahzad Bhatti to build networks through social media. That module, which recruited across northern India, was reportedly busted recently.
Recruits from this network were allegedly assigned tasks including drug smuggling, installing surveillance cameras at sensitive and crowded locations, and carrying out targeted attacks. With these modules dismantled, officials say the KSG has now advised the ISI to redirect its operational focus southward.
'Shifting attention to the south could divert the focus of security agencies from Jammu and Kashmir and northern India. It would also give the ISI time to review and reorganise its operations in those regions,' an official said.
Why South India: Deep Radicalisation and Existing Networks
An Intelligence Bureau official stated that Al Qaeda and the Islamic State have, over the years, sought to expand their influence across parts of southern India — particularly in Kerala, Karnataka, and Tamil Nadu.
'Kerala, Karnataka and Tamil Nadu have been hot hubs for these terror outfits. The radicalisation is so deep in south India that the KSG felt it would be fit to tap these individuals and get them to carry out terror acts for the ISI,' the official said. Officials noted that the ISI would not need to undertake fresh radicalisation efforts, since Al Qaeda and the Islamic State have reportedly already done so — effectively providing a ready pool of recruits for the Pakistani intelligence apparatus.
The exposure of these individuals to radical Islamist ideologies — including through networks in West Asia — is said to make them particularly vulnerable to recruitment by ISI handlers.
Post-Operation Sindoor Pressure and the Pan-India Ambition
Officials noted that the strategic shift has taken on added urgency following Operation Sindoor, after which India declared that future acts of terrorism would be treated as acts of war rather than merely cross-border terrorism. This declaration is said to have increased pressure on Pakistan-based networks to conceal their involvement by avoiding direct contact with recruits and relying instead on overseas intermediaries.
Notably, officials describe this southward pivot not merely as a temporary diversion but as part of a broader pan-India strategy — one in which the ISI seeks to activate radicalised individuals across the country simultaneously. 'Al Qaeda or the Islamic State would not necessarily oppose the ISI approaching this pool of individuals, as their objective is the destruction of India and they would welcome an ISI intervention,' an official said. As security agencies are alerted to the threat, the coming months will test India's counter-terror architecture in states that have so far operated below the threshold of active conflict.
Point of View
Karnataka, and Tamil Nadu over years. The KSG's evolution from a Kashmir-focused advisory body to a pan-India strategy cell reflects a structural change in how Pakistan calibrates its hybrid war, not just a tactical adjustment. India's counter-terror framework, built largely around a northern/J&K paradigm, will need a substantive recalibration to address a dispersed, ideology-first threat landscape in the south — one where handlers remain offshore and deniability is by design.
NationPress
30 Oct 2026
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the Kashmir Study Group (KSG) and what does it do?
The Kashmir Study Group is an internal ISI advisory body set up after India's abrogation of Article 370 in 2019, led by Pakistani military officers at the level of Brigadier and Colonel. It initially advised the Pakistani establishment on Jammu and Kashmir but has reportedly expanded its brief over the past two to three years to cover other parts of India, including recommending a southward shift in terror recruitment strategy.
Why is the ISI reportedly shifting its focus to south India?
According to intelligence officials, increased security pressure in Jammu and Kashmir and the dismantling of recruitment networks in northern India have made operations there harder to sustain. The KSG advised that pivoting to south India would divert Indian security agencies' attention while the ISI reorganises its northern operations — and that deep-rooted radicalisation by Al Qaeda and the Islamic State already provides a ready recruitment pool in Kerala, Karnataka, and Tamil Nadu.
Which states in south India are considered vulnerable, and why?
Intelligence Bureau officials identified Kerala, Karnataka, and Tamil Nadu as states with pre-existing radicalised networks linked to Al Qaeda and the Islamic State. Officials said exposure to radical ideologies — partly through connections with West Asian networks — makes individuals in these states particularly susceptible to ISI recruitment.
How does Operation Sindoor factor into this strategic shift?
Following Operation Sindoor, India declared that future acts of terrorism would be treated as acts of war. Officials say this has increased pressure on Pakistan-based handlers to conceal their involvement, pushing them toward indirect recruitment through overseas intermediaries and away from direct contact with Indian recruits.
What was the Shahzad Bhatti network and what happened to it?
Shahzad Bhatti was reportedly recruited by the ISI, on KSG advice, following the Red Fort car bomb blast in Delhi to build a social-media-based recruitment network across northern India. Recruits were allegedly tasked with drug smuggling, installing surveillance cameras at sensitive locations, and carrying out targeted attacks. The network was recently dismantled by security agencies, which officials say accelerated the ISI's decision to redirect focus southward.
