Tamil Nadu’s Islamic State problem and why Cuddalore is back on the radar
Chennai, Oct 2: A specific threat to the Cuddalore jail in Tamil Nadu has once again raised the question about the big presence of the Islamic State in the state. Tamil Nadu and the ISIS have had a long association and it was from this state that the first known recruit was reported.
This time around the threat is to the jail where a top ISIS operative Ansar Meeran is lodged. He was arrested on the charge of mobilising funds and facilitating the travel of a few persons to both Iraq and Syria.
NSA visits Iran to discuss regional peace and security from ISIS
The National Investigation Agency which received this input has shared it with the Tamil Nadu police following which security has been stepped up. The input suggests that operatives of the ISIS are planning to strike at the jail and try and free Meeran.
The Tamil Nadu connect:
The first known ISIS recruit from India was in fact a resident of Cuddalore. Haja Fakkruddin, it may be recalled had in early 2014 left for Syria through Singapore to be part of the ISIS. This was followed by a series of events related to the group and there was an image on the social media that went viral, in which several youth were seen posing with ISIS merchandise.
The threat of the ISIS has been looming large in the state and there are several pockets where the problem is severe. While looking into Haja's case, it was found that he was radicalised by a Cuddalore based group, .
Haja is not the only operative from Cuddalore to have joined the ISIS. A computer engineer was deported recently from Singapore. He said that it was he who had introduced Haja to this organisation, following which he was radicalised.
During the various searches, literature relating to the ISIS had been found. Speeches of the 20th century Islamist thinker Abul Ala Maududi have been found in the possession of several youth. Further the police have also seized compact discs which had the speeches of radical elements such as Anwar Al Awlaki and Abdul Raheem Green.
ISIS operative from Kerala deported to India
The TN connection:
In its 2016 chargesheet, the National Investigation speaks about the role of Mohammad Naseer, a computer engineer in his mid 20s. Naseer was heading to Libya from Sudan, but was apprehended and later deported to India.
He
did
his
computer
engineering
from
the
MNM
college
in
Chennai.
It
was
at
this
time
that
he
would
visit
a
mosque
at
Chennai
which
was
run
by
the
Tamil
Nadu
Thowheed
Jamath,
non-political
Islamic
Organisation
that
preaches
a
puritanical
version
of
Islam.
This
group
was
founded
by
P
Jainul
Abdeen
in
2004,
when
he
broke
away
from
the
Tamil
Nadu
Muslim
Munnetra
Kazhagam.
The role of the ISIS in Tamil Nadu was unraveled in a big way in 2014. In August 2014, the police arrested Abdul Rahman and Mohammad Rizwan from the Ramnathapuram district on the charge that they were distributing t-shirts with the ISIS emblem. A photo showing 26 youth posing with the t-shirt in front of a Mosque at Thondi had surfaced on the social media. While the police were not able to find any direct link with the outfit, it however showed that the ISIS was gradually being received in the state.
In Tamil Nadu, there are several groups which have been trying to wade off this threat. The high number of radicalisations in the state since early 2013 had left security agencies and many members of the Muslim community worried.
Intelligence
Bureau
officials
tell
OneIndia
that
the
threat
in
TN
is
not
just
from
the
ISIS.
The
Al-Qaeda
through
its
various
shadow
outfits
have
set
up
shop
in
the
state.
One
such
outfit
is
called
the
Base
Movement,
which
subscribes
to
the
Al-Qaeda's
ideology.
The
combination
of
terror
groups
in
South
comprises
both
underground
and
overground
operatives.
There
are
groups
such
as
the
Al-Ummah
which
operate
openly
and
focus
largely
on
political
hits.
The
blast
at
Coimbatore
or
the
one
outside
the
BJP
office
in
Karnataka
in
2013
all
bore
the
signature
of
the
Al-Ummah
as
the
attacks
were
political
in
nature.
J&K: 5 terrorists killed, but spurt in recruitment's remains a concern
The spill out:
The problem of the ISIS did not remain restricted only to Tamil Nadu or the rest of South India. The spill out of this was felt in Maharashtra, where four persons left India for Syria to join the outfit. However, the biggest case relating to the ISIS was again reported from South India. Nearly 23 persons had gone missing from Kerala and investigations showed that they had joined the ISIS in Afghanistan.
The Afghan wing of the ISIS has been heavily recruiting Indians and the target has always been South and Kerala in particular. It was found that it is easier to target youth from Kerala due to the high levels of radicalisation and hence this has been a preferred destination.