What are the latest NIA charges in Bhopal's HuT terror case?
Synopsis
Key Takeaways
- NIA charges one individual and files new accusations against five in the HuT case.
- A total of 18 individuals are now charged in the conspiracy.
- The case began with the ATS in May 2023.
- Secret meetings aimed at promoting anti-democratic ideologies were uncovered.
- The NIA continues to investigate and dismantle the terror network.
New Delhi, Nov 7 (NationPress) The National Investigation Agency (NIA) has issued a charge sheet against one individual and has leveled additional accusations against five others in a 2023 Madhya Pradesh terror conspiracy linked to the banned Hizb-ut-Tahrir (HuT) organization, as announced by the agency on Friday.
The anti-terror agency submitted its initial supplementary charge sheet in case RC-15/2023/NIA/DLI before the NIA Special Court in Bhopal, Madhya Pradesh.
“With this update, the total number of accused charged in the HuT conspiracy case has reached 18. The primary charge sheet was filed against 17 individuals on November 4, 2023,” the NIA stated in its press release.
The supplementary charge sheet filed on Friday identifies Mohsin Khan alias Dawood, Mohammad Alam, Misbah-ul-Hasan, Yasir Khan, Syed Danish Ali, and Mohammad Shahrukh for their roles in a terrorist act that involved setting fire to a police officer’s vehicle under the orders of their foreign handler.
“While Mohsin has been newly charged under various sections of the UA (P) Act and IPC, additional provisions of the UA(P) Act and IPC have been applied to the other five accused who were already charged in the original document,” the agency elaborated.
Importantly, the case was originally initiated in May 2023 by the Anti-Terror Squad (ATS) in Bhopal, “based on intelligence that HuT members were secretly recruiting Muslim youth in Madhya Pradesh and other regions of India to overthrow the democratically elected government and establish a Sharia-based Caliphate.”
The agency further emphasized: “Secretive meetings were held disguised as religious gatherings (Dars) to disseminate anti-democratic ideologies, foster communal discord, and indoctrinate youth into carrying out acts of violent jihad. The group also engaged in physical training and combat-style exercises to prepare for future violent actions, as revealed by the investigation.”
The NIA is persistently pursuing its investigation into the broader conspiracy of HuT, aiming to locate absconding members, sympathizers, and foreign handlers to dismantle the terror outfit’s anti-India organizational and financial frameworks.