Officials from the Madhya Pradesh Anti-Terrorist Squad (ATS) brought terror suspects linked to the Bhopal-Hyderabad module of the radical Islamic organization Hizb-ut-Tahrir (HuT) to Telangana on transit remand.
On Monday, ATS officials transported Yasir Khan, along with five others who were arrested in Bhopal last week, to Hyderabad. The group was taken to various locations in the city to reconstruct the crime scenes. The HuT-related operation conducted jointly by Madhya Pradesh's ATS and the Intelligence Bureau (IB) resulted in the arrest of 17 individuals in Bhopal, Chhindwara, and Hyderabad simultaneously.
The arrests included ten individuals from Bhopal, one from Chhindwara, and six from Hyderabad.
Mohammad Saleem, Abdur Rahman, Mohammad Abbas Ali, Sheikh Junaid, Salman, and Mohammad Hameed were apprehended on May 9 by the IB, the counter-intelligence unit of the Telangana Police, and the Madhya Pradesh ATS. They were subsequently taken to Madhya Pradesh for interrogation.
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During the investigation, it was revealed that these terrorists had been holding meetings at the residences of Salim, Rehman, and Salman (who are currently evading capture). Yasir Khan attended all the meetings held at Salim's residence.
Salim had purchased three air pistols and pellets from an arms shop for shooting practice. The accused individuals also confessed to engaging in fitness training, including practising attacks with swords and axes, as well as shooting arrows with bows.
Salim and Rehman, who played significant roles in the Hyderabad module, had previously attempted to recruit others into terrorism. They enticed individuals to attend meetings at their homes, initially portraying them as religious activities. However, those who found the content of their meetings provocative and harboured suspicions about their activities refrained from participating.
The ATS has decided to convert those who had distanced themselves from the module into witnesses for the case. The custody of these terrorists by the ATS will expire on Friday.