Karnataka police detain kingpin of inter-state terror module

The Karnataka police on Thursday detained the mastermind of a terror module that was plotting to foment communal trouble in the state. The breakthrough comes days after the cops uncovered the plot by a few religious fundamentalists by cracking down in Bengaluru and Tamil Nadu.

Mehboob Pasha (45) and his accomplice Mohammed Mansur, who is the 10th accused in the case, were nabbed from Gurappanapalya in Suddaguntepalya limits of South-East division by a joint team of the Central Crime Branch and Internal Security Division (ISD).

Following a tip-off by their counterparts in Tamil Nadu, a CCB sleuth had earlier filed a complaint against 17 people under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act in Suddaguntepalya police station.

Narasimhamurthy, a police inspector attached with the ISD, is said to have received credible information about the whereabouts of the duo. Sources revealed that Pasha was the main accused in the case as he was organising meetings of like-minded people at his house. Pasha was the main supplier of weapons to kill Hindu organisation leaders in Tamil Nadu.

“The gang had plans to eliminate some leaders of Hindu organisations in Karnataka and other states,” a senior officer revealed.

Pasha was reportedly working at a private travel agency in Kalasipalya. “He joined as a driver and drove buses between Mumbai and Bengaluru for a few years. Later, he became the in-charge of the parcel section in the same company. During his visits to Mumbai, he came in contact with a few anti-social elements and developed contacts with weapon suppliers in Mumbai,” sources in CCB said. Pasha is also said to be running an organisation ‘Al-Hind’ in
Bengaluru.

A weapon supplier

He used to source weapons through couriers and pass them on to Imran Khan — one of the three accused who was arrested on January 7 at Gurappanapalya. Pasha also supplied pistol and bullets through Imran to his associates across Tamil Nadu. The same weapons were used to kill Hindu activists since 2014.

Pasha visited a madrasa in Gundlupet where he met Thoufeeq and Abdul Shameem. Police suspect that Mansur’s son or his relative’s son was studying in the madrasa which made them visit the place several times. They also had plans to purchase a property in Gundlupet.

All the accused, according to the police, are former members of the banned outfit Al-Ummah.