From Bollywood to bombs? Wannabe dancer, 24, who entered reality TV competitions is arrested for 'planning terror attacks on Delhi'
Delhi Police have arrested a 24-year-old man who once took part in a dance show on reality TV, saying he swapped his showbiz dreams for the horror of jihad.
Mohammed Sajid, 24, was allegedly part of a syndicate planning attacks on the Capital.
Sajid was influenced by jihadi videos and was pushed over the edge by his handlers, who constantly taunted him for being a dancer, saying it was against Islam.
“How will you face Allah?” was a jibe he frequently faced, a police officer said.
Delhi Police are holding 12 people who they believe were planning major attacks in Delhi
Sources say he was disheartened after failing to qualify for the main draw of two TV dance shows, and the snide remarks triggered his radicalisation.
On Wednesday officials arrested Sajid and two others, Sameer Ahmed and Shakir Ansari, as well as detaining nine people for allegedly being part of a terrorist module inspired by the Pakistan-based Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM) group, which India blames for a deadly attack in January at Punjab’s Pathankot airbase.
The families of these young men have denied the police allegations.
JeM connection?
Officials claim Sajid was recruiting people in the name of Jaish, though central agencies are sceptical about the possibility of a direct link with the outfit.
According to the police, the 12 men met in December at Sajid’s house in north-east Delhi’s Chand Bagh area.
“During this meeting, Sajid propagated terror activities. We have evidence for this,” alleged Arvind Deep, special commissioner of police (special cell).
According to officials, Sajid has accepted that he was in touch with Jaish-e-Mohammed leader Masood Azhar’s brother.
Grief: Sajid's family at their house in Delhi's Chand Bagh. They completely deny he is linked to a terror conspiracy, saying he does not know the others arrested.
The special cell has registered a case under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act and Section 120 B (criminal conspiracy) of the Indian Penal Code.
Teams are conducting raids and more arrests are likely.
The anti-terror unit has seized 11 batteries, two timer devices, three pipes and over 250 grams of “black powder”, suspected to be an explosive substance, from the three men arrested. They were trained in making improvised explosive devices, or IEDs, through online sources, police allege.
“Their links with the Jaish-e-Mohammed outfit was traced through technical input. Shakir was to leave for Pakistan soon and was in touch with a relative of Masood Azhar,” added Deep.
Target practice
Officials claim that during interrogation, the men revealed their plans to carry out serial strikes at popular markets in the city and places with high foot-fall. According to the police, the accused watched videos of terrorist outfits and had literature from such groups.
However, police have not recovered any direct evidence linking them with terrorist organisations in Pakistan.
“We will analyse their WhatsApp data during further investigation,” Deep said.
“All the twelve were part of a WhatsApp group where they allegedly shared details about the terrorist outfit,” Deep added.
The families of the twelve claim that all of them have been falsely implicated in the case by Delhi Police, and that they aren’t even friends. They say the men only went to the same masjid to offer prayers.
10-day judicial custody for suspects
By Sneha Agrawal in Mail Today
The three alleged JeM operatives arrested by Delhi Police’s special cell were sent to judicial custody for 10 days by a Delhi court on Wednesday.
In the remand application it is alleged that Sajid was indulging in anti-national activities and had motivated others as well.
He had allegedly called for a secret meeting in December 2015, where he showed a blueprint of how to make an IED.
In an intercepted conversation it was revealed that Sajid contacted his associate and told him that he had prepared a product and needed to test it in some park to check its capacity and range.
Police had initially sought 15-day custody stating that explosives had been seized from Sajid and they wanted to interrogate the accused to unearth the alleged conspiracy.
Defence counsel MS Khan opposed the plea, saying police had already recovered materials and there was no need for custodial interrogation.
Sister claims 'bomb-maker' Sajid 'was burned by hot milk'
By Shashank Shekhar in New Delhi
Policemen stand outside Sajid's house in North East Delhi
Delhi Police’s claim that Mohammed Sajid was an expert at bomb-making and injured his left hand while making an explosive device has been rubbished by his sister, who says that the burn wounds were caused by hot milk.
Sajid used to stitch women’s innerwear at the ground floor of their three-storey building in Chand Bagh, a locality in North East Delhi, and also lived there.
His relatives allege that police have falsely implicated him in the terror case.
“On Monday Sajid asked for a cup of milk, which I was boiling. When it was time to take the milk, he started hitting me on my head and mocked me. I got irritated and threw hot milk on his hand that severely burnt him,” recalled his elder sister Mehzabi.
She claims this mistake is now being used by police to arrest her brother.
Calling the police theory bogus, Sajid’s family members said that raid team took away shaving blades, batteries, a paint box, poison used to kill insects, the motor of the sewing machine, and a box in which the family had kept goods for Sajid and Mehzabi’s weddings.
“Why would he make explosives in his own house, which is barely 20 feet wide, when he knew that it is strong enough to kill us all? If it exploded in his hand then how is it possible that no one heard about it or complained to cops? If he was doing something unlawful we would have given him to the cops,” his mother Amna said.
When Mail Today spoke to other residents of their locality, they denied hearing the sound of an explosion any time recently.
“It was at around 10.30 when cops barged into the house and only women were present in the house as others, including Sajid, had gone to offer namaz. Police broke into the ground floor where he lived and started throwing his belongings. They pushed us away when we intervened,” said Mehzabi, adding that her brother was a skillful tailor but not a terrorist.
Locals claim there was no friendship between the eight people picked up by the police. The only point of interaction possible was Fatima masjid, located in the same area where all of them offered prayers.
