Surat Crime Branch arrests Shakil from Maharashtra for conspiring to assassinate Hindu leaders, including Nupur Sharma

Following the arrest of Maulvi Sohail Abu Bakar Timol in Surat for plotting the assassination of former BJP spokesperson Nupur Sharma, another suspect, Shakil Sattar Sheikh, was apprehended by the Surat Crime Branch in Nanded, Maharashtra. Simultaneously, revelations of a Pakistan connection linked to Maulvi Sohail Abu Bakar Timol have surfaced.

Reports say that Shakil Sheikh alias Raza was in touch with the Maulvi, who conspired to kill Nupur Sharma and other Hindu leaders. The Surat Crime Branch is interrogating the 19-year-old man, who will be brought to Surat.

Before Shakil’s apprehension in Nanded, the Surat Crime Branch detained Nepali Shahnaz, also known as Mohammad Ali Mohammad Sabir, in Muzaffarpur, Bihar. After his arrest, he was presented before the court and placed in custody for three days. Upon inspecting his phone, law enforcement officers discovered Pakistani numbers, raising suspicions that he may have previously travelled to Pakistan.

Accused Shahnaz used a Nepali SIM card to make threats on social media against four people, including Sanatan Sangh national president Updesh Rana, editor-in-chief of Sudarshan News Channel Suresh Chavanke, Hyderabad Hindu leaders T Raja Singh and Nupur Sharma. Earlier, police questioned the priest’s brother.

Earlier on May 4, the Surat police arrested Sohail Abu Bakar Timol, a radical Islamic preacher, for making threats to kill Hindu activist Updesh Rana, who leads an organisation called ‘Sanatan Sangh’. Timol resides in the Kathor area of Surat city in Gujarat. Surat Commissioner Anupam Singh Gehlot provided the confirmation of this development during a press conference. Besides working as a factory manager, Sohail serves as an Aalim (Islamic scholar) at a madrassa. He had threatened Updesh Rana over WhatsApp, following which a police complaint was filed against him.

Sohail intended to target former BJP spokesperson Nupur Sharma and Hyderabad MLA T Raja Singh. Additionally, anti-Hindu content was discovered on the mobile phone of the radical Islamic preacher by the Surat Police. It is reported that the accused had been in contact with associates in Nepal and Pakistan for 1.5 years and individuals in Indonesia, Vietnam, and Kazakhstan. He utilised gaming platforms as a means of communication with his accomplices.

Maulvi’s arrest in Surat: Details of planning uncovered

-According to Surat police commissioner Anupam Singh Gehlot, these individuals are “highly radicalised” and have discussed plans to assassinate Hindutva leaders, as well as the murder of Kamlesh Tiwari, the Uttar Pradesh-based president of the Hindu Samaj Party, who was killed on October 18, 2019, in Lucknow.

-The police officer stated that according to Maulvi Sohel Abubakar Timol’s records, he intended to assassinate Rana imminently to disrupt communal harmony during the ongoing Lok Sabha elections. Additionally, the Surat police collaborated with other agencies to ascertain whether additional targets were under consideration.

-According to a statement from the crime branch, preliminary interrogation of the accused has uncovered that he was contacted by two individuals named Dogar and Shehnaz, whose phone numbers are associated with Pakistan and Nepal, respectively. The release mentioned that these individuals initiated contact with the accused approximately eighteen months ago via social media platforms using phone numbers registered in Pakistan and Nepal. They allegedly incited the accused by asserting that Hindu organisations in India had disparaged the Prophet, and it was imperative to rectify this situation.

-The police further stated that Timol obtained an international SIM card from Laos in order to conceal his identity. Additionally, he acquired a business number on social media, which he utilised to issue threats to Rana.

-Police reported that on the chat application, Timol authored speeches denigrating Hinduism and warned Rana of a fate similar to Kamlesh Tiwari’s murder. Moreover, a member of Timol’s chat group purportedly sent Rana’s photograph with a Rs 1 crore incentive for his assassination. The release indicated that the accused utilised social media platforms to propagate communal discord, posting images of the Indian national flag and making derogatory remarks about Hinduism in posts or videos. Additionally, Timol allegedly fabricated electronic evidence and solicited weapons from foreign contacts.

-The release added that the arrested individual was reportedly in communication with individuals possessing Whatsapp numbers originating from various countries, including Pakistan, Laos, Kazakhstan, and Laos.

-He was booked under Indian Penal Code sections 153 (A) (indulge in wanton vilification or attacks upon the religion, race), 467, 468 and 471 (related to forging of documents or electronic record) and section 120 (B) for criminal conspiracy, as well as the Information Technology Act, the official said.