NIA to probe terror module case

The National Investigation Agency (NIA) will probe an Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act case against a terror module that was plotting to foment communal trouble in the state.

The case was officially handed over to the NIA from the Central Crime Branch (CCB) after the government passed the order.

The police had earlier uncovered a plot by religious fundamentalists by cracking down in Bengaluru and Tamil Nadu.

A senior officer from the CCB confirmed that the case, registered at the Suddaguntepalya police station against 17 people on January 17, was handed over to the NIA. “We had recorded the statements of the five people arrested in the case, including the mastermind Mehboob Pasha. Some of the accused were arrested in Delhi and Tamil Nadu,” said the officer.

The accused are former members of the banned outfit Al-Ummah. Some of the arrested were involved in murder cases of Hindu leaders in Tamil Nadu. The police said they were plotting to kill Hindu leaders across India and had links with foreign handlers.