New Delhi: The arrest of Shama Parveen Ansari in connection with an online radicalisation case only shows that outfits such as Al Qaeda and Islamic State have built a massive network of digital warriors.
Shama, who originally hails from Jharkhand, was arrested in Bengaluru by the Gujarat Anti Terrorist Squad for allegedly promoting the ideology of Al Qaeda in the Indian Subcontinent.
The probe found that she was using digital platforms to circulate content which called for an armed revolution of Jihad against the Indian government. She was using social media platforms to post inflammatory content and also videos on Al Qaeda.
The ATS found that she had posted videos by Maulana Asim Umar, slain Al-Qaeda ideologue Anwar al-Awlaki, and Maulana Abdul Aziz of Lahore’s Lal Masjid. These were aimed at disturbing communal harmony and were also a larger strategy of Al Qaeda relating to recruitment.
This arrest is a crucial one and will help unearth the larger network of Al Qaeda sympathisers in India who are spreading the ideology of the banned terror outfit.
The arrest comes in the backdrop of four more persons being held from Delhi, Noida, Ahmedabad and Modasa for committing the same offence.
Al Qaeda in the Subcontinent was formed in 2014 with the sole intention of carrying out terror activities in India. The India connection to the outfit was clear when it appointed Asim Umar alias Sheikh Umar as its chief.
The appointment raised eyebrows as Umar is originally a resident of Sambhal in Uttar Pradesh. Umar’s go-to man was one Mohammad Usman, who is also a UP resident.
These appointments made it clear that their India operations were of utmost importance to them. The five recent arrests in Gujarat and three other locations show that the outfit has managed to create an army of digital warriors.
Al Qaeda has chosen the online path as it realises that, like the Islamic State, the ideology needs to spread. India is a space that both Al Qaeda and the Islamic State are fighting for.
In a bid to outdo each other, both outfits have created digital warriors across the country to not just spread the ideology, but also to recruit cadres into their fold. (IANS)
Also Read: Plan to establish Al Qaeda training camp in Jharkhand uncovered
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