NIA charge sheets 17 ISIS men for making IEDs, radicalising youth

The National Investigation Agency (NIA) on Monday charge sheeted 17 hardcore agents of the proscribed global terrorist network, ISIS, in a conspiracy involving recruitment and radicalisation of youth and fabrication of improvised explosive devices in the Delhi-Padgha ISIS terror module case.

According to NIA, the agency had originally charge sheeted three persons in March 2023 and filed its supplementary charge sheet before the Special Court at Patiala House in New Delhi on Monday against 17 others, of whom 15 are from Maharashtra while one belongs to Uttarakhand and one to Haryana. The module was allegedly headed by Saquib Nachal, who hails from Pagda and has been involved in earlier cases of terrorism.

The accused, charge sheeted under various sections of IPC, UA(P) Act, Arms Act and Explosive Substances Act, were found to have been engaged in a massive ISIS conspiracy involving recruitment, training and propagation of ISIS ideology among gullible youth, along with fabrication of explosives and IEDs and fund-raising for the banned outfit.


NIA, which has been cracking down on various ISIS modules active in the country with the intent of dismantling the nefarious terror network of the international organisation, had registered the case in November 2023. Its investigation had subsequently led to the seizure of several incriminating documents and data relating to manufacturing of explosives and fabrication of IEDs, along with propaganda magazines like 'Voice of Hind', 'Rumiyah', 'Khilafat', 'Dabiq', published by ISIS.

The agency had further found during the investigations that the accused had been sharing digital files related to IED fabrication with their contacts. They were also found to be actively raising funds to further their terror plans as part of the ISIS agenda to spread violence in India and destroy its secular ethos and democratic systems.

The accused had carried out several acts before unleashing terrorist attacks, including recruitment of vulnerable youth into the organisation. They had taken 'bayath' (pledge of allegiance) from an arrested accused Saquib Nachan, a habitual offender in many previous terror cases and a self-styled Amir-e-Hind for ISIS in India.