Lucknow: Three members of al-Qaeda’s India affiliate, Ansar Ghazwat-ul-Hind, have been sentenced to life imprisonment by a special NIA court in Lucknow.
The three were arrested by the Uttar Pradesh Anti-Terrorist Squad (ATS) in July 2021 for allegedly conspiring to carry out explosions in various parts of the state.
Minhaz Ahmed and Maseeruddin alias Mushir of Lucknow, and Tawheed Ahmad Shah of Jammu & Kashmir – were also planning to execute suicide bombings in crowded public places, the police had claimed at the time of arrest, as reported by The Indian Express.
The National Investigation Agency (NIA) took over the case later.
“The NIA court in Lucknow found the three guilty on multiple charges and, later in the day, sentenced them to life imprisonment. The court also imposed a fine on them,” special counsel for prosecution Mithlesh Kumar Singh said.
The three were held guilty of “waging, or attempting to wage, war against the Indian government, and collecting arms with the intent to wage war”. They were also convicted under provisions of the Explosive Substances Act and the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act.
The court examined 42 prosecution witnesses and five defence witnesses during the t
rial, Singh said.
Defence counsel Mohammad Shoaib said they would file an appeal against the judgment.
According to the prosecution, Minhaz Ahmed was employed as a laboratory technician before setting up a battery shop, while Maseeruddin was engaged in miscellaneous occupations.
The Uttar Pradesh Anti-Terror Squad (ATS) received information that Umar Halmandi, who took over al-Qaeda in the Indian Subcontinent (AQIS) after Asim Umar’s death in 2019, was recruiting and radicalising youths in Lucknow, it was mentioned in court. Information was also received that al-Qaeda had directed Halmandi, believed to be operating from the Pakistan-Afghanistan border region, to initiate terror operations in India.
Acting on Halmandi’s instructions, the trio became part of a larger conspiracy and were actively planning to carry out terrorist acts in various cities of UP, particularly Lucknow, it was claimed. For this purpose, they allegedly procured arms, ammunition and explosive substances, the agency said.
Minhaz and Maseeruddin were in contact with members of Ansar Ghazwat-ul-Hind, the police said.
The UP ATS claimed to have recovered illegal weapons, explosives and an IED fitted into a pressure cooker among other things from the houses of Minhaz and Maseeruddin during their arrest in July 2021.
The NIA is stated to have found that Minhaj, who was active on social media platforms, came in contact with an individual identifying himself as Tawheed Ahmad Shah. The two allegedly began communicating regularly thereafter, it was claimed, adding, Tawheed introduced Minhaj and Maseeruddin to other terror operatives.