Delhi Police Nabs 5 More Operatives in Major Pakistan's ISI-Backed Terror Module Crackdown

In a major development in its ongoing anti-terror operation, the Delhi Police Special Cell has arrested five more members of an eight-man terror module with direct links to Pakistan's Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) and its handler, Shahzad Bhatti, according to ANI.

The arrests come just a day after the force dismantled a broader international syndicate, bringing the total number of operatives taken into custody to 12 over 48 hours.

The Newly Arrested Accused

The five individuals, all in their early twenties, were apprehended from multiple states and are identified as:

• Sohail (26), son of Shamshad Ali, a resident of Ballabhgarh, Faridabad, Haryana.
• Sonu Meena (30), son of Mewa Lal Meena, from Maruti Chowk, Ghitorni, Delhi.
• Sachin Kumar Meena (20), son of Devi Shaya Meena, hailing from Anchadi, Dausa District, Rajasthan.
• Md. Kaif (21), son of Lallu, a resident of Nagina, Nuh District, Haryana.
• Md. Rihan (20), son of Md. Shakeel, from Karim Nagar, Meerut District, Uttar Pradesh.

Mission: Target Police, Glorify Pakistani Handlers

The freshly arrested operatives were entrusted with a three-pronged mission to destabilize the region:

Direct Threats: They were tasked with surveilling and planning attacks against police personnel stationed in Delhi and its neighboring states.

Glorifying the Enemy: The module aimed to popularize and glamorize their Pakistani handlers by pasting posters of Shahzad Bhatti across the National Capital Region.

Branding Terror: They were actively engaged in painting graffiti to promote the ISI-backed militant outfit Tehreek-e-Taliban Hindustan (TTH)-a group that recently claimed responsibility for the killing of an Assistant Sub-Inspector (ASI) in Majitha, Amritsar.

#WATCH | 5 more accused of an 8-member multi-state terror module linked to Pakistan ISI handler Shahzad Bhatti arrested.

ARRESTED PERSONS:

(1)Sohail (26 years)
S/o Shamshad Ali, r/o Ballabhgarh, District Faridabad, Haryana

(2)Sonu Meena (30 years)
S/o Mewa Lal Meena, r/o… https://t.co/ox2sSp2XOx pic.twitter.com/coxTh96dUs

— ANI (@ANI) June 17, 2026

Authorities have confirmed the seizure of arms, ammunition, and other incriminating materials from the suspects' possession.

Unraveling a Pakistan-Controlled Network

The fresh arrests build upon Tuesday's operation, in which seven operatives belonging to a larger terrorist-crime syndicate were apprehended. That syndicate, run by Pakistan-based gangster-turned-terrorist Shahzad Bhatti and his associate Ajmal Gujjar, was operating a sophisticated cross-border network, NDTV reported.

Police have described the entire module as functioning on "direct instructions from Pakistan" to orchestrate terrorist strikes, smuggle illegal weapons and narcotics, and gather vital intelligence on potential targets. The syndicate's supply chain involved smuggling consignments of arms, ammunition, and heroin from Pakistan into India via Punjab, which were then distributed across Delhi-NCR.

Officials have hailed the swift action as a major success in preventing large-scale violence. Investigations revealed that the network was actively preparing a "significant attack" in the capital region. Members had already conducted reconnaissance of crowded public areas, vital establishments, and sites associated with prominent religious leaders in Delhi-NCR. Photographs and videos of these locations were allegedly captured and forwarded to handlers in Pakistan.

Police noted that the operatives' clear objective was to create an atmosphere of fear, stoke communal unrest, and trigger widespread panic throughout the region. Specific intelligence inputs, combined with technical surveillance, mobile data analysis, and ground-level verification, enabled the Special Cell's Eastern Range team to map the syndicate's structure and execute the coordinated arrests.