The anti-terrorism agency, on Sunday, said that it has arrested a second year B.Tech student Mohsin Ahmed from Delhi’s Batla House, for his alleged role in collection of funds for the terrorist organisation ISIS.
The National Investigation Agency (NIA) said that the 22-year-old accused is an “active member” of the terror outfit, and has collected funds from an ISIS “sympathiser” through cryptocurrency and sent them to various conflict zones, including to Syria.
The alleged perpetrator is studying at Jamia Millia Islamia University. He was arrested after the probe agency raided his premises in Delhi, and was produced before the duty magistrate at the Patiala House Courts Complex. While the NIA sought seven days’ custody to collect more evidence in the case, the court allowed only one day’s custody.
According to reports, while Ahmed was arrested last week on August 6 from Delhi’s Batla House, where he was living with his friend on rent, he is originally from Patna.
The NIA said that the case was filed into the terror outfit’s online portal on June 25, and further investigation is underway in the case. Meanwhile, the family members of the accused have categorically rubbished the charges and said that they will challenge the charges in court.
Speaking with NDTV, the alleged perp’s sister said that he is an engineering student, and does not know anything about the Islamic State. She said that during the COVID lockdown, her brother helped a lot of poor people by collecting donations for them and distributing food grains. She further said that he also used to help poor school children.
“Why would he ask a day before yesterday for Rs 4,000 for his coding course if he was involved in collecting funding,” his sister told reporters.
Aam Aadmi Party leader Amanatullah Khan, who is also an MLA from Okhla, said that the student’s arrest was “unconstitutional”, and completely wrong. He said that it’s a new way devised by the BJP and RSS to defame and harass the Muslim community. “(He) is innocent and has no relation with any anti-social element… should be released soon,” tweeted the AAP leader.
Meanwhile, CNN-News18 has reported that Mohsin Ahmed had come to Kota for engineering two years ago, where he got in touch with various ISIS operatives in the Middle East and Syria. According to the publication’s source, he was also put in touch with a 28-year-old woman operative from the Alhol camp in Syria, with whom he supposedly fell in love. The Jamia student is said to have been in contact with at least 35 ISIS commanders in the war-torn country.
“He was extremely radicalised. He was developing some extreme intents and was picked up to ensure he doesn’t do anything major. We are checking his associates in the university and Kota. This is a major arrest before Independence Day,” said the publication’s source.
The NIA produced the student in the main court on Monday, and gained further custody of him till August 16.
Reportedly, the agency has raided 13 spots across seven states, including several districts of Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat, Bihar, Kerala, Karnataka, Maharashtra, and Uttar Pradesh, and detained 48 people – 13 on August 1 and 35 on July 31 – with alleged links to the Islamic State, foiling their plan for “something big” planned against India.
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