NIA raids 10 locations in Tamil Nadu in Hizb-ut-Tahrir case
PTC News Desk: As part of its investigation into Hizb-ut-Tahrir, an extremist Islamic group connected to ISIS, the National Investigation Agency (NIA) searched ten locations in Tamil Nadu early on Sunday. Two places in the Erode district were among the targets.
According to persons with knowledge of the development, “the raids are still ongoing,” according to ANI.
The raids come after a man was apprehended by the NIA in 2021 following searches at multiple Tamil Nadu locations in connection with the Madurai Hizb-ut-Tahrir module case. The case was first filed at the Thideer Nagar police station in Madurai city and was initially lodged under several charges of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and Section 13(1)(b) of the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, 1967.
Mohammed Iqbal, the main suspect, is accused of using his Facebook account, “Thoonga Vizhigal Rendu is in Kazimar Street,” to publish offensive content about a certain community, so causing discord between other religious groups.
A supplemental charge sheet was filed by the NIA in March 2022 against two accused individuals: Ziyavudeen Baqavi, a resident of Kumbakonam in Thanjavur district, and Bava Bahrudeen, also known as Mannai Bava, a resident of Mannargudi in Tiruvarur district.
The investigation showed that the accused were HuT members. They were purportedly involved in radicalising and enlisting naive youth in order to create an Islamic State and impose a draft constitution penned by HuT founder and radical Islamic preacher Taqi al-Din al-Nabhani.
It is reported that Bava Bahrudeen and Ziyavudeen Baqavi were arranging gatherings to enlist new members and holding covert courses to radicalise, indoctrinate, and inspire young people to strive toward the creation of an Islamic State by toppling the Indian government. Additionally, they allegedly planned to use social media sites like Facebook and YouTube to create new cells in other regions of Kerala and Tamil Nadu in order to propagate the HuT’s philosophy.
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