Mehdi's police custody extended

 The Fourth Additional City Civil Sessions Court, designated as NIA special court, on Thursday extended the police custody of pro-IS Twitter handler Mehdi Masroor Biswas till January 2, 2015.

His earlier police custody  of five days ended on Thursday and he was produced before the judge seeking extension of his police custody.

A senior police officer said, “We requested the judge to extend Mehdi’s police custody, as we need more time to question him and analyse his replies. The investigation is still in the preliminary stage. Considering the gravity of the case, there is a lot more to be verified.”

Police Commissioner M N Reddi said the tweets had been downloaded and were being analysed. “We are waiting for back-end information, like direct messages and e-mails, which are yet to be received. The officers concerned will need time to collect the data and send it to us.”

Asked about any breakthrough in the investigation, a top source said, “It will take time to get a clear picture of his activities on the virtual world. He is giving different versions on questions asked, which is common among such suspects.

We are gathering details about his personal and social life, and the way he interacted with colleagues and friends. If needed, a team will be sent to his native place to get more information. In-house officials are helping us translate his tweets and materials from Arabic.”