Five more suspects in Karna terror module arrested in Maha, AP

Intensifying the crackdown on the "terror module" busted in Karnataka, police have arrested five more suspects in Maharashtra and Andhra Pradesh, as a probe showed that a nuclear installation and several defence establishments were targeted for attack.

With the arrest of the five suspects--four in Nanded and one in Hyderabad--who allegedly had links with the 11 people held by the Bangalore police, the number of those detained in the terror plot rose to 16.

The eleven persons including a journalist and DRDO scientist arrested by Bangalore police earlier this week were suspected to have links with with Pakistan-based terror group Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) and Harkat-ul-Jihad-Al-Islami (HuJI) and were allegedly plotting to target MPs, MLAs and mediapersons in Karnataka

Maharashtra ATS arrested four terror suspects from Nanded district for their alleged links with the arrested persons in Karnataka, an ATS official said in Mumbai today.

"We have arrested four persons, who have links with the terror suspects arrested in Bangalore," ATS chief Rakesh Maria said. However, Maria refused to divulge any further details.

According to police sources, following the arrest of the terror suspects in Bangalore by the local police, they had shared some information with Maharashtra ATS officials, which has resulted in the arrest of the four persons.

The four suspects were picked up from various parts of Nanded district in the past two days following a tip-off about their possible involvement in terror activities. Bangalore police arrested a youth in Hyderabad yesterday with alleged links to LeT and HuJI.

21-year old Obedulla-Ur-Rehman was arrested on the basis of information given by the 11 terror suspects taken into custody in Hubli and Bangalore earlier this week, Police Commissioner Jyotiprakash Mirji told reporters in Bangalore.

"Obedulla-Ur-Rehman along with others had conspired to kill two corporators and one prominent leader of a Hindu organisation of Hyderabad,"  Mirji said.

During interrogation, those arrested in Karnataka on Thursday confessed that the module
had planned to attack a nuclear installation and vital navy and army establishments located in South India following directives from their LeT and HuJI handlers based in Pakistan and Saudi Arabia, government sources said in Delhi.

Journalist Muthi-Ur-Rehman Siddiqui and Aijaz Ahmed Mirza, a junior research fellow with DRDO, and Dr Jafar Iqbal Sholapur were among those arrested.

When asked whether Andhra Pradesh police team was here, Mirji said, "we will be sharing information with other (state) police officers and vice-versa. Other agencies will come when we need help".

On whether any defence installations were being targeted, he said, "we are still investigating, we will let you know." He also said Interpol assistance would be sought if required.

Answering a query on the claims made by parents of some of the arrested that they were innocent, Mirji said, "of course parents in their way are correct. They will not know what their children are doing."

To whether the parents and kin could visit the accused, he said, "they can go and meet their children. It will be a very fair investigation." Earlier, state DGP Lalrokhuma Pachau and Mirji met Governor H R Bhardwaj and apprised him about the case.

Mirji refused to share details of the discussions they had with the Governor.