How ISI used the IS ideology to stay clear of the blame

In the year 2014, there was an interesting shift in the manner in which the Indian Mujahideen operated. A letter was sent out to the Mumbai police which was signed just, "Mujahideen." The Indian was missing in the name and this marked a shift in strategy.

As we debate whether the Islamic State has really arrived in India or not, we must not not lose track of the fact that the IS in India only comprises former members of the Indian Mujahideen. The Indian was dropped from the name at the behest of the ISI which was getting blamed for every attack in India as a result of which international pressure had shot up on Pakistan.

The ISI has nurtured several home grown outfits in India. The SIMI or the IM were both products of the ISI in a bid to inflict cost-effective terror on India. For a while the ploy worked and attacks in India either by the SIMI or IM were termed as home-grown.

However as Intelligence Bureau officials dug deeper, it was found that the members of both these groups were trained and funded by the ISI. It was the SIMI which was first approached by the ISI. The ISI wanted attacks in India by Indian nationals. It served two purposes- one they did not have to spend time or take risks in sending Pakistani national to carry out attacks in India. Two when Indian names were involved, Pakistan would not be blamed.

With the number of strikes by the IM increasing, the Pakistan link soon emerged. Several countries across the world recognised that it was the ISI which was guiding these attacks. It was time for Plan-B. The ISI put out a theory that operatives of the IM were upset. They wanted to move towards a hardcore Islamic ideology. The operatives such as Yasin Bhatkal even spoke about how the ISI was not Islamic enough.

It was around the same time that the Islamic State was going all guns blazing and captured the imagination of millions of Muslims after declaring the Caliphate. Yasin Bhatkal was however arrested by this time. But several important members such as Shafi and Sultan Armar were still out in the open. Sultan Armar a resident of Bhatkal announced that he had broken away from the IM and was starting a recruiting agency for the IS in India.

IB officials say that every member of the IS in India is a former IM member. At first it appeared as though they were part of the IS, but further probing revealed that it was the ISI which had guided them to make this shift. When an IS inspired attack is carried out the ISI is not blamed. The ISIS does not subscribe to the ISI. The ISI wanted attacks to continue to India, but did not want to be blamed for the same. Using the IM members to carry out operations in India in the name of the IS only meant that the disruptions in India continued without the ISI being blamed for it.

OneIndia News