23-Year Old VIT Vellore M.Tech Student From Kerala Is Said To Have Joined Islamic State

A 23-year old student Najeeb from Kerala who was enrolled in Masters of Technology (M.Tech) course at Vellore Institute Of Technology (VIT) is said to have joined the Islamic State (IS), CNN-News18 has reported. He was missing since 15 August.

Najeeb’s parents have informed the police that they received a message from him in which he mentioned that he has joined IS. In this message to his mother, Najeeb wrote that he has reached his destination, “I have made Hijra”. In Islam, Hijra refers to migration of Islam’s prophet Muhammad from Mecca to Medina with his followers.

Despite repeated pleas by his parents begging him to return home, Najeeb is undeterred. Even threats by his parents of committing suicide if he didn’t come back seemed to have no effect. Instead, he told his mother that, “We will all die soon. Why do you live with non-believers, you too make hijra and only this land is worth it.” When his parents threatened that they will report to the police, he told them that that would cause problems for them not him.

According to police investigation, Najeeb first traveled to Dubai from where he went to Iran for which he had a month long tourist visa.