NIA court in Mizoram sentences two Bangladeshis in terror conspiracy case

AIZAWL — The National Investigation Agency (NIA) on Wednesday secured the conviction and sentencing of two members of the banned Bangladeshi terror outfit Ansal-al-Islam for conspiracy to unleash terror attacks in India, sources said.

NIA sources said the accused have been identified as Mahmud Hassan alias Shariful Hassan, and Mohamad Sayad Hussain alias Shihab Hossain.

The NIA special court in Aizawl sentenced both to five years imprisonment along with a fine of Rs 10,000 or one month in default, after finding them guilty under various provisions of the Indian Penal Code, Foreigners Act, and Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act.

The duo illegally entered India and stayed at various places on fake identity documents, such as Aadhaar card etc.

They were charge-sheeted on January 23, 2020, following an investigation by the NIA, which took over the case in September 2019.

The NIA probe revealed that the duo aided and abetted a conspiracy hatched by Ansar-al-Islam, which claims to be the Bangladesh wing of Al-Qaeda, for the commission of terrorist acts in India.

The agency unravelled their role in the conspiracy through the analysis of various digital documents, audio clips, and speeches to promote Jihad, as well as images of hand-written details of bomb-making, among other seizures.

A total of 11 mobile phones and 16 SIM cards were seized from the possession of the dup.

Mahmud Hassan, who was lured into the conspiracy by Abdul Wadud, operated under the guidance of his handler Munir.

Photographs of important public and religious places in Bengaluru recovered from his mobile phone showed that he had conducted a recce of the same.

Mohamad Sayad Hussain used to shift frequently on directions from his handler Bashir Ahmed, and disguised his profession to conceal his identity and avoid detection by the police.