Special Task Force (STF) of West Bengal has arrested two Muslims in the Kharibari area of the North 24 Parganas district. The arrest has been made for their links with the Islamic terrorist outfit Al-Qaida in the Indian Sub-Continent (AQIS), an affiliate group of Al-Qaida. The STF has discovered Islamic literature, urging to incite Jihad against India. The arrested Muslims have been identified as Abdur Rakib Sarkar and Kazi Ahasan Ullah. Sarkar is the resident of Gangarampur in Dakshin Dinajpur district and Ullah is the resident of Arambagh in Hooghly district. As per the reports, both were detained by the STF under the Shasan Police Station of Barasat district police.
As per the statement given by a senior official of the STF:
Both have been arrested because of their involvement with AQIS. Documents containing highly ‘radicalized’ thoughts, indicative of waging war against India, have been seized from their possession. A specific case is being initiated against them.
The officer added:
After interrogating the two, the police have come to know that at least 17 other members of the AQIS are active in this region.
Both Sarkar and Ullah are detained under the various provisions of the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA) and the Indian Penal Code (IPC). The arrested Al-Qaida terrorists will be produced before the local court on August 18, 2022.
