NIA conducts raids in Tripura’s Sonamura with 9 other locations over terror conspiracy by Bangladesh-based Al-Qaeda network

A six to seven-member team of the National Investigation Agency (NIA) conducted raids across multiple locations in a bordering village of Sonamura subdivision under Sepahijala district of Tripura in the early hours of Tuesday.

Sources said that the NIA team, which had been stationed in the subdivision for the past three days, was seen moving around in plain clothes, accompanied by local police and other security officials.

The NIA along with Tripura has also conducted a series of simultaneous searches at multiple locations across the country in connection with alleged activities promoted by some Bangladeshi nationals as part of the banned terror outfit Al-Qaeda’s conspiracy to destabilize India.

The crackdown was carried out at nine locations linked with people suspected of supporting and funding the activities of Al-Qaeda. The raids started early on Monday in Jammu and Kashmir, Karnataka, West Bengal, Bihar, Tripura and Assam.

NIA through a statement said that the crackdown at nine locations, linked with individuals suspected of supporting and funding the activities of the proscribed terrorist organisation Al-Qaida, started early in the morning in the states of Jammu and Kashmir, Karnataka, West Bengal, Bihar, Tripura and Assam.

The searches led to the recovery of incriminating documents showing detailed banking transactions, digital devices including mobile phones, and other evidence related to terror funding activities.

“As per NIA investigations, the suspects whose premises were raided are sympathisers of a Bangladesh-based Al-Qaida network. The searches were part of NIA’s ongoing investigations into a 2023 case pertaining to a conspiracy orchestrated by Bangladesh-based Al-Qaida operatives in collaboration with the arrested individuals. The conspiracy was aimed at propagating Al-Qaida’s terrorist activities and radicalising gullible youths in India,” said the statement.

NIA added that in November last year, NIA had filed a chargesheet against five accused, including four Bangladeshi nationals, identified as Mohd. Sojibmiyan, Munna  Khalid  Ansari  @ Munna Khan, Azarul Islam @Jahangir or Aakash Khan, Abdul Latif @Mominul Ansari. The fifth accused, Farid, is an Indian national.

NIA investigations into their antecedents had revealed that the accused had procured forged documents to carry out their activities covertly. They were actively involved in radicalising and motivating vulnerable Muslim youth in India, spreading Al-Qaida’s violent ideology, collecting funds, and transferring these funds to Al-Qaida, said the statement.

While, sources said that the Centre had recently alerted intelligence and security agencies in Tripura to be on the lookout for a possible attempt of infiltration of terror outfit members, especially Jamaat-ul-Mujahideen Bangladesh (JMB), from Bangladesh into the Indian territory through Tripura.

In May this year, the NIA arrested a human trafficker, Jalil Miah, suspected to be a key mastermind in a case of trafficking of Bangladesh nationals and Rohingyas via borders of the Northeast region.

The agency had previously arrested 33 people concerning a case initiated by the Assam Special Task Force (STF). This case was filed on March 22 of last year under various sections of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and the Passport Act.

During its investigation, the agency discovered that Jalil Miah, a suspected human trafficker arrested in Tripura, was closely associated with another man who had been charged, Jiban Rudra Pal, also known as Jibon or Suman. Additionally, it found links to two absconders, Juj Miah and Shanto.

Security agencies recently found that most of the human trafficking from neighbouring countries was being done through the Indo-Bangla border in Tripura. Later, those trafficked were transported to different parts of the country along with fake documents and forcefully made to do labour.

Meanwhile, Border Security Force (BSF), Government Railway Police (GRP), Tripura police and Railway Protection Force (RPF) continuously arresting several of these foreign nationals as well as some of the touts or human traffickers involved in the racket from different parts of Tripura.