Beretta pistol, live cartridges recovered: ATS arrests 3 planning terror attacks across country; under watch for a year

NEW DELHI: The Gujarat Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS) on Sunday arrested three suspects in connection with an alleged conspiracy to carry out terrorist attacks in different parts of the country, officials said.

According to the ATS, the suspects had been under surveillance for nearly a year before being apprehended while attempting to supply weapons. “Three suspects have been arrested by the Gujarat ATS. They had been on the Gujarat ATS's radar for the past year. All three were arrested while supplying weapons. They were planning to carry out terrorist attacks in various parts of the country,” the agency said in an official statement.




The arrested individuals have been identified as Dr Ahmed Mohiuddin Syed, son of Abdul Khadar Jeelani, Mohd Suhel, son of Mohd Suleman, and Azad, son of Suleman Saifi. The arrests were made near the Adalaj Toll Plaza, according to the ATS.

“Gujarat ATS arrested Dr Ahmed Mohiuddin Syed s/o Abdul Khadar Jeelani, Mohd Suhel s/o Mohd Suleman, Azad s/o Suleman Saifi, from near Adalaj Toll Plaza. Two Glock pistols, one Beretta pistol, 30 live cartridges, and 4 litres of castor oil were recovered from them. All three were arrested while supplying weapons. They were planning to carry out terrorist attacks in various parts of the country,” the ATS said in its official statement.

The ATS added that the three had been under surveillance for the past several months before being apprehended. The recovery of firearms and materials has prompted further investigation into their network and possible foreign links.

Earlier this year, Gujarat ATS had arrested five suspected members of Al-Qaeda in the Indian Subcontinent (AQIS), including a woman from Bengaluru who was allegedly running an online terror module and maintaining contact with Pakistani handlers.

The woman, Sama Parveen (30), was arrested in Bengaluru for her alleged association with Al-Qaeda. Gujarat ATS Deputy Inspector General of Police Sunil Joshi had said that her detention followed the arrest of other operatives connected to the same module.

On July 23, the ATS apprehended four more individuals allegedly linked to AQIS — Mohd Faiq from Delhi, Mohd Fardeen from Ahmedabad, Sefullah Kureshi from Modasa in Aravalli, and Zeeshan Ali from Noida, Uttar Pradesh.

Confirming the arrests, DIG Sunil Joshi said that all four suspects had been under continuous watch for suspected involvement with AQIS, a banned terror organisation affiliated with Al-Qaeda. “The operation was conducted based on specific intelligence inputs and coordinated surveillance,” he said.

Select The Times of India as your preferred source on Google Search