Pan-India Lashkar network spans South to East, deep recruitment trail exposed
Delhi Police arrested Lashkar-e-Tayiba commander Shabbir Ahmed Lone, exposing a pan-India terror network with modules in Tamil Nadu, Delhi and West Bengal. Lone had recruited youth and Bangladeshis for reconnaissance and planned temple attacks. Central agencies are monitoring other modules
New Delhi: The arrest of Lashkar-e-Tayiba (LeT) commander Shabbir Ahmed Lone by the Special Cell of the Delhi Police is being seen as a major breakthrough. Lone was planning large-scale attacks and his arrest has thwarted a major terror plot.
Lone was running a network with pan-India presence, setting up modules across Tamil Nadu, Delhi and West Bengal. He was being handled by LeT’s Sumana Babar and had recruited youth from Tirupur in Tamil Nadu, Malda in West Bengal and also from Delhi. He was targeting Bangladeshi nationals living illegally in India.
To avoid suspicion, Lone deployed operatives from South India for missions in North India. His recruits carried out reconnaissance of several targets, with plans to orchestrate a series of blasts over time.
The plot came to light when Delhi Police arrested six Bangladeshi nationals for posting pro-Pakistan images in New Delhi. The posters also hailed slain Hizbul Mujahideen commander Burhan Wani. Investigators found this was a test case to check the capabilities of recruits.
Lone had also instructed Bangladeshis living illegally in West Bengal to conduct reconnaissance missions, particularly targeting temples. Delhi Police learnt that Lone had ordered reconnaissance at Gauri Shankar and Kalkaji temples in Chandni Chowk.
The arrest of the six nationals was a setback for LeT. They had recorded videos of putting up the posters and sent them to Lone, who praised them and asked them to remain on standby until further instructions.
Police said the recruits were told to continue their normal work at garment factories in Tamil Nadu until called for action. Another official said the next plan was to attack the two temples and then pause before the next mission. Lone was operating from Nepal but was asked to rush to India after the arrests. He was caught while entering through the open border.
Delhi Police and central intelligence agencies coordinated the operation and nabbed Lone at Ghazipur. An Intelligence Bureau official said while a major attack has been averted, focus will now be on other modules.
The West Bengal module is under close watch, with intelligence inputs suggesting trained recruits are waiting to cross into India through Nepal and Bangladesh. Agencies suspect Saidul Islam, operating from Bangladesh, is overseeing these operations and planning to send more men to West Bengal and the Northeast.
Officials are also monitoring Hatiara area in Kolkata, where a base has been set up to coordinate with module members in Malda.
