The NIA on Wednesday nabbed 16 persons, including a group leader of a newly-traced Islamic State module "Harkat-ul-Harb-e-Islam" that was allegedly planning attacks in north India, especially Delhi, following raids conducted at 17 places here and in Uttar Pradesh, officials said.
The National Investigation Agency (NIA) arrested 10 of the detained persons, including one Mufti Suhail who was leading the group, while it is questioning the rest, Inspector General of Police (NIA) Alok Mittal told the media here.
The officer said the module was planning attacks on important political and security offices in Delhi.
The agency recovered a country-made rocket launcher, 12 pistols, 120 alarm clocks, 100 mobile phone, 135 SIM cards, many laptops and various electronic gadgets, besides 150 rounds of ammunition.
"It was a self-funded group. They stole gold ornaments from their homes and sold it to fund their activities. They were planning to detonate a remote-controlled bomb or a fidayeen kind of attack," Mittal said.
The arrested suspects also tried to make bullet-proof fidayeen vest. It was recovered from Amroha. Mufti Suhail is a native of Amroha in Uttar Pradesh and lives in Jafarabad area in the national Capital.
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Raids were also conducted at Lucknow, Hapur and Meerut in Uttar Pradesh.
A state official said a state-wide alert had been sounded after receiving information about the presence of Ansar Ghazwatul Hind chief Zakir Musa holed up somewhere in Amroha.
Raids were conducted at the Saidpur Imma village in Amroha district from where the NIA picked up three siblings -- Idrees, Nafees and Anees -- son of Shaheed Ahmad, who owns a welding shop at Dhanaura Adda in the district.
Ahmad had also been on the NIA radar for some time now.
The three brothers were being questioned, an NIA source told IANS. They were being monitored by the anti-terror probe agency for the past three months after the sale of a pistol to terrorist Jamshed by students of DNS College.
Raids were also conducted at the Shahi Chabutara and Pachdara localities, and at the house of Siraz Lassiwala of Amroha district.
In east Delhi's Jafarabad area, the NIA carried out searches along with the Delhi Police's Special Cell and recovered seven pistols and swords.
Mittal said that questioning of those nabbed would reveal vital information about the module, their plans and handlers.
--IANS
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