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Intelligence Agencies Warn of Independent Islamic State Modules Across India

Intelligence Agencies Warn of Independent Islamic State Modules Across India
Former SIMI operatives resurface, set up independent IS modules across India: Intel · thehansindia.com

Indian officials say some former members of a banned group called the Students Islamic Movement of India have become active again.

They are allegedly supporting the Islamic State, a militant organisation.

Officials say these people create small groups that work independently.

Because the groups do not regularly communicate with one another, authorities say they are difficult to detect.

Some alleged leaders call themselves emirs and try to recruit young people.

They also promote the idea of creating an Islamic State in India.

One example mentioned is Mohammad Saquib Abdul Hamid Nachan in Maharashtra.

Officials say he allegedly recruited more than 30 youths from several states.

Authorities describe the development as a nationwide security challenge.

Key facts

Groups mentioned
Students Islamic Movement of India, Indian Mujahideen, Islamic State and Popular Front of India
Reported locations
Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh and Maharashtra
Organisational pattern
Modules reportedly operate independently and are not interlinked
Alleged recruitment
Mohammad Saquib Abdul Hamid Nachan allegedly recruited more than 30 youths
Recruitment reach
The alleged recruits came from Uttar Pradesh, Karnataka, Delhi, Madhya Pradesh and Maharashtra
SIMI ban
The Students Islamic Movement of India was banned in 2001
PFI ban
The Popular Front of India was banned by the Central government in September 2022

Quotes

An Intelligence Bureau official

Unnamed Intelligence Bureau official discussing the modules' structure and surveillance challenges

“Such individuals deliberately keep a low profile and avoid coming under the radar of security agencies. However, they continue to operate quietly in the background, carrying out recruitments and propagating the ideology of the Islamic State. It is an operation that runs largely on autopilot and poses a threat to national stability.”
thehansindia.com
“They run their operations individually and do not mix operations with other former members. This has created a major problem for the Indian agencies as none of these modules are structured and inter-linked. This makes it hard to track such persons as there is no proper organisational structure.”
thehansindia.com

Sources

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