NIA Court sentences one accused in Al-Qaeda terror conspiracy case in Lucknow

NEW DELHI: The Special Court of the National Investigation Agency (NIA) in Lucknow sentenced one accused to imprisonment and imposed a fine for its involvement in a terror conspiracy linked to the banned terrorist organisation Al Qaeda on Thursday.

The arrests took place based on information shared by one Al-Qaeda member, Umar Halmandi, who had himself identified and recruited some persons in Lucknow for raising the Al-Qaeda module in the region. He had further informed the police about the Al Qaeda affiliate ‘Ansaar Gajwatul Hind’ (AGH), an outfit raised to carry out a series of terrorist acts before August 15, 2021, in various cities of U.P, especially Lucknow.

According to the NIA, Mohammad Moid, along with two other accused, Shakeel and Mohd. Mustaqeem, assisted the accused Minhaj and Museeruddin in obtaining weapons and ammunition to further the terror conspiracy of AGH.

The NIA stated that Minhaj was radicalised by Tawheed and Adil Nabi, also known as Musa, and subsequently conspired with Museeruddin, who even pledged loyalty (baiyat) to advance the terror plot. Together, Minhaj and Museeruddin acquired arms, ammunition, and explosive materials with the intention of waging war against the Government of India.

The court has sentenced Mohammad Moid to the time he has already spent in prison, which amounts to 1 year, 9 months, and 13 days. Additionally, he was fined Rs. 5,000 under Section 25 (1B)(a) of the Arms Act, in conjunction with Section 120B of the Indian Penal Code (IPC). This sentence was pronounced after the accused pleaded guilty.

Currently, the trial for the remaining five accused, who have been charged in this case, is ongoing. This case relates to the arrest of two Al Qaeda members in July 2021 by the U.P. Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS). Earlier, the National Investigation Agency (NIA) took over the case from the ATS. On January 5, 2022, the NIA chargesheeted five accused and later filed a supplementary chargesheet against one additional individual in August of the same year. (ANI)