ISIS-Inspired BTech Graduate, BCom Student Arrested By UP ATS From Aligarh, Were Associated With Student Body Of AMU

Two individuals were apprehended by the Uttar Pradesh Anti-Terrorist Squad (ATS) and subsequently transported to the ATS headquarters in Lucknow for interrogation on Monday (6 November).

Both the arrested individuals hail from Aligarh and are identified as Abdullah Arsalan (26) and Maaz Bin Tariq (25). The pair was allegedly plotting acts of terrorism across the state.

Arsalan holds a BTech degree in petroleum chemical engineering from a private university, while Tariq is currently pursuing a BCom degree through distance learning.

Special DG (Law and Order) Prashant Kumar stated that both suspects were influenced by the ideology of ISIS (Islamic State of Iraq and Syria) and were receiving directives from ISIS operatives to carry out acts of terror in the state.

According to the Times of India, Kumar added, "They were in the process of gathering materials and planning a potential attack."

During the operation, the ATS discovered propaganda materials related to both ISIS and Al Qaeda in the Indian Subcontinent (AQIS) on pen drives belonging to Arsalan and Tariq.

The ATS revealed that the names of Arsalan and Tariq had come to their attention following the arrest of Shahnawaz Alam and Rizwan Ashraf by the Special Cell of the Delhi police.

These individuals were associated with the Students of Aligarh Muslim University (SAMU), and it was determined that some members of this student body had sympathies for ISIS.

Alam and Ashraf had self-radicalized and had confessed to planning attacks in Ayodhya, Delhi's Akshardham, and Chabad House in Mumbai on 2 October.

Based on their confession, Rizwan Ashraf, an engineer, was also apprehended. Ashraf was allegedly in communication with a foreign-based handler and had pledged to join ISIS.

The electronic devices recovered from the arrested individuals contained evidence of anti-national ideology and literature associated with the banned organisations ISIS and AQIS, according to the ATS.

Arsalan and Tariq were subsequently arrested and presented before a local court, where they were remanded to 14 days of judicial custody.

A senior ATS officer stated that they had requested custody remand to gather more information about the accused's network through detailed interrogations and to identify and apprehend their associates.