JOIN USA National Investigation Agency (NIA) special court on Tuesday convicted 13 of the 18 people facing trial for recruiting young people from Kerala for training with the Lashkar-e-Toiba (LeT).
LeT operatives Thadiyantavida Nazeer and Sarfraz Nawaz were among those convicted. The sentence will be pronounced on Friday.
According to the NIA, Nawaz was “the key conspirator” who released funds and provided logistic support for sustaining the LeT’s operations in Kerala. Besides Nazeer and Nawaz, those convicted were Abdul Jaleel, M H Faisal, P Mujib, Shafaz, Ibrahim Maulvi, Firoz, Mohammed Nawaz, Tayattil Abdul Jabbar, Sabir P Buhari, Sainuddin and Ummer Farooq.
A special court in Kochi had acquitted five people—Mohammed Nainar, Badaruddin, P K Anas, Abdul Hameed and Shineej—listed as accused in an NIA charge sheet.
The case hogged the limelight as it revealed major links between the state and terror outfits in Jammu and Kashmir for the first time.
The killing of four youths from Kerala in separate encounters with security forces at Kupwara in 2008 led to investigations into the terror links. The Edakkad police in Kannur registered an FIR in October 2008. The Centre transferred the case to the NIA in December 2009. The NIA filed a supplementary charge sheet in February 2011. Trial commenced in February last year.
The NIA had chargesheeted 24 people in the case, including the four killed in 2008, identified as Fayaz, Fayis, Abdul Rahim and Mohammed Yasin. Two accused—LeT men and Pakistani nationals Wali alias Abu Rehan and Mohammed Sabir—are absconding.
According to the NIA, the accused had conducted “motivational” classes in Kerala and Hyderabad to prepare potential recruits for “jihad.” The agency also alleged that they forged documents to facilitate movement within and outside the country. They were tried for offences including sedition, collecting arms to wage war against the country and criminal conspiracy.