Maharashtra ATS arrests Marathwada youth for suspected Islamic State links

Mumbai: The Maharashtra Anti-Terrorist Squad (ATS) on Sunday arrested a 24-year-old youth from Parbhani district in Marathwada region for suspected Islamic State links. “Khan was arrested early today and around one kg of explosives and other instruments have been recovered from him,” a senior ATS official told PTI. Prima facie, the explosives are low-grade explosives, the official said. Khan was also found to have used a car remote key for operating an IED, he said. [caption id=“attachment_2912772” align=“alignleft” width=“380”] Representational image. Reuters[/caption] ATS is also probing his suspected connections with global terror outfit Islamic State. Recently, 31-year-old Nasir Bin Yafi Chaus was arrested from Parbhani. Chaus was planning to join the Islamic State and was in constant touch with their members through social media. On Friday, 43-year-old Rizwan Khan, allegedly involved in recruiting youths for Islamic State, was arrested from Thane district in a joint operation by Kerala Police and the Maharashtra ATS as part of the probe in the southern state where several youths are suspected to have joined the terror group and headed to destinations abroad after being radicalised. Khan was picked up from his residence at Kalyan in Thane, within days of arrest of a man associated with Islamic Research Foundation (IRF) of controversial preacher Zakir Naik, based on a complaint in Kerala. On 21 July, Kerala Police, assisted by Maharashtra ATS, arrested Arshi Qureshi, associated with IRF, from Navi Mumbai for allegedly radicalising youths. The Kerala police traced Qureshi to Mumbai following a complaint lodged in Kochi by the brother of a young woman, suspected to have joined the Islamic State along with her husband and left the state. Ebin Jacob (25), brother of Merin alias Mariam who is missing along with her husband Bestin Vincent alias Yahia from Kerala, had told Palarivattom police in Kochi that there was an attempt to forcibly convert him to Islam and make him join Islamic State, and that Bestin and Qureshi were behind it. Based on this, the Kerala police slapped charges under Section 13 of the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA) on the duo and booked them under sections of the IPC. At least 21 youths from Kerala were reported missing and suspected to have joined Islamic State.