CHENNAI: The National Investigation Agency (NIA) has intensified its probe into a significant ISIS radicalisation and recruitment case in Tamil Nadu, announcing the arrest of four more individuals on June 18. The latest arrests, identified as M Ahamed Ali (34), M Jawahar Sathik (40), Shiek Dawood, and Raja Abdullah alias MAC Raja, were made from various locations across the state. This brings the total number of arrests in the intricate case, which is an offshoot of the 2022 Coimbatore blast probe, to eight.
In a statement shared on the social media platform X, the NIA confirmed that the newly apprehended individuals were allegedly radicalised by Jameel Basha, the founder of the Madras Arabic College, also known as Kovai Arabic Educational Association (KAEA). The agency revealed that Basha, along with his associates, allegedly exploited Arabic language classes as a front to subtly recruit susceptible youth and indoctrinate them with a radical Salafi-Jihadi ideology. Shiek Dawood was specifically arrested from Chennai as part of this operation.
https://twitter.com/NIA_India/status/1935371596920750591)
The NIA’s ongoing investigation into the TN ISIS Radicalisation and Recruitment case (RC. No.01-2023/ NIA/CHE) suggests a sophisticated network operating under the guise of educational institutions. The agency’s probe has meticulously uncovered how Jameel Basha and his co-conspirators allegedly utilized classrooms and social media platforms to further their anti-national agenda of radicalization and recruitment.
Earlier in the investigation, the NIA had already charge-sheeted Jameel Basha along with three of his alleged associates: Israth, Syed Abdur Rahman, and Mohammed Hussain. These individuals were implicated in propagating a dangerous ideology that promoted ‘Khilafat’ (Islamic caliphate) and ‘martyrdom through Jihad.’ Their teachings allegedly advocated for violence and armed struggle with the ultimate goal of establishing an Islamic state by overthrowing the democratically elected government of India.
The severity of this radicalisation and recruitment drive became tragically evident with the Coimbatore car bomb explosion in October 2022. In that incident, Jameesha Mubeen, who was allegedly a radicalized individual, carried out a vehicle-borne improvised explosive device (IED) attack in front of an ancient temple in Coimbatore. This devastating act served as a stark reminder of the real-world consequences of the ideologies being propagated by such groups. The NIA’s continued investigation into this broader network is a critical part of its efforts to counter radical terror activities targeting the nation.
NIA sources indicate that the KAEA, founded by Jameel Basha, allegedly followed a syllabus derived from certain foreign nations. This curriculum, combined with the alleged radicalization efforts of its faculty members, was reportedly used to influence impressionable Muslim youth and recruit them for ISIS activities. The use of Islamic regional centers under the guise of Arabic classes for radicalizing gullible youth led the agency to register a separate case specifically targeting this “Tamil Nadu ISIS radicalisation and recruitment case.”
The current wave of arrests follows earlier significant actions taken by the NIA. In February 2024, the agency conducted extensive searches at 21 locations across Tamil Nadu. These operations yielded a trove of electronic gadgets, including 34 SIM cards, six SD cards, and three hard disks, providing crucial evidence for the ongoing investigation. During those earlier searches, the NIA had also apprehended key individuals, including Maulvi Hussain Faizy from Ponvizha Nagar at Ukkadam (Coimbatore), Israth from Kuniyamuthur in Coimbatore, Syed Abdur Rahman Umar from Pollachi, and Jameel Basha Umari from Chennai.
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