Kerala to Karnataka: How ISIS terrorists are propagating ideology

New Delhi, Jan 30: Deepthi Marla, Mohammad Waqar Lone, Mizha Siddeeque, Shifa Haris, Obaid Hamid Matta, Madesh Shankar, Ammar Abdul Rahiman and Muzamil Hassan Bhat have been named in the chargesheet by the National Investigation Agency in connection with an Islamic State case.

Mohammad Ameen from Kerala was running several ISIS propaganda channels on various social media platforms to propagate violent Jihad the NIA said. All the eight accused chargesheeted on Friday are affiliated with the banned terrorist organisation ISIS and were involved in radicalising, recruiting, organising terror funds and grooming like-minded gullible Muslim youth through different secured social media platforms to perform 'Hijrat' (migration) to ISIS-controlled territory for joining the ISIS, the NIA said.

Earlier this month, Maryam the daughter of former Congress MLA the late B M Idinabba was arrested in connection with the Kerala ISIS case by the National Investigation Agency. The probe so far has revealed that she had honey trapped and then converted 10 Hindu youth into Islam. Once they were converted to Islam, she would force them to join the ISIS.

In the case of Muslim youths she would radicalise them and then get them to join the ISIS, an official told OneIndia. During the probe one Madesh Perumal alias Abdul told the NIA that she had used provocative chats to lure him into the ISIS. Perumal told the NIA that the way in which she spoke was so impressive that he not only converted to Islam, but also agreed to go to Afghanistan and carry out bombings.

The NIA learnt that she had created several fake accounts in both Hindu and Muslim names. With the Hindus she would pose as a Hindu and in the case of Muslims, she posed as a Muslim.

She is married to Idinabba's son, Anas Abdul Rahiman. The arrests took place in Ullal, Mangalore and the case relates to the one in which scores of persons left Kerala to join the ISIS in Afghanistan also known as the Islamic State Khorasan Province.

During the investigation it was revealed that after the decline of the ISIS in Syria and Iraq, Marla and Mohammad Ameen visited Kashmir in January 2020 for Hijrah or religious migration. They also ended in terror acts and supported the activities of the ISIS, the NIA said. The NIA also said that Maryam was the kingpin in the case along with Ameen.

Following the incident in Kerala, last year, the NIA had conducted raids in Ullal and arrested Ammar Abdul Rahman, the grandson of Idinabba. It is alleged that Rehman's niece was part of the group of Muslims who had left Kerala for Afghanistan. Idinabba passed away in 2009.

In 2017, the NIA had filed a chargesheet in which said that Rehman's niece, Ajmala and her husband Shifas K P left for Afghanistan via Bengaluru and joined the ISKP in the Nangarhar province. Ajmala is said to have been killed in 2018.

During the 2021 raid, Maryam was interrogated by the NIA for two days. However she was not arrested at that time. Sources tell OneIndia that her activities and movement were closely monitored.

Said to be highly radicalised, Maryam originally known as Deepti hails from Kodagu district in Karnataka, which is 240 kilometres away from Bengaluru. She met Anas while studying BDS in Deralakatte, following which she converted to Islam. She is said to have become very conservative and radicalised.

The NIA alleges that she had connections terrorists of the ISIS. She is also suspected of radicalising many youth and recruiting them into the outfit.

Idinabba's family has been under the scanner of the agencies for long. During the raids in 2021, the NIA also arrested one Madesha S P alias Ali Malviya, Ubaid Hamid and Muzzamil Hasan Bhat, residents of Kashmir.

The NIA said that these persons are closely linked with Mohammed Ameen Yahya, an ISIS sympathiser. Yahya a resident of Mallapuram in Kerala was arrested on March 15 for propagating on behalf of the ISIS on social media channels. He was also accused of radicalising and recruiting Muslim youth into the ISIS. The NIA had also held one Muhab Anva from Kollam and Dr Rahees Rashid, a dentist from Kerala.

The NIA in its 2016 chargesheet said that after leaving India, the accused persons continued with anti-India activities. They propagated the ideology of the ISIS.