Gujarat ATS nabs 3 conspiring to carry out terror attack; chemicals, weapons seized

The Gujarat Anti-Terrorist Squad (ATS) has arrested three persons, including a doctor, allegedly involved in a conspiracy to carry out a major terrorist attack with weapons and chemicals, an official said on Sunday.

The accused, one of whom hails from Telangana and two from Uttar Pradesh, were in Gujarat to exchange weapons and had conspired to carry out terrorist activities involving a potent poison, 'ricin', Gujarat ATS DIG Sunil Joshi said.

The accused men have also disclosed that their handler sends the arms consignment via a drone across the Pakistan border, he said.

Acting on a tip-off, an ATS team arrested Dr Ahmed Mohiyuddin Saiyed, a resident of Hyderabad in Telangana, on November 7 with two Glock pistols, a Beretta pistol, 30 live cartridges and four litres of castor oil, near Adalaj in Gandhinagar, Joshi told reporters.

On interrogation, Saiyed revealed that he was plotting to carry out terrorist activities and had collected the weapons from an isolated place at Kalol in Gandhinagar district.

The official said that Saiyed's handler, Abu Khadija, was a resident of Afghanistan associated with the ISKP (Islamic State Khorasan Province), and he has also been in contact with several individuals from Pakistan.

“To execute a major terrorist attack, Saiyed, who earned his MBBS degree in China, has been preparing a highly lethal poison named 'ricin'. He had already started necessary research, procured equipment and raw materials, and initiated the initial chemical processing,” Joshi said.

He said that Saiyed is highly educated and radicalised, and had planned to collect funds and recruit persons as part of a conspiracy to carry out major terrorist activities.

The ATS team also arrested persons who supplied weapons to Saiyed based on information collected from his mobile phone, he said.

The other accused, Azad Suleman Sheikh and Mohammad Suhail Mohammad Saleem, both hailing from Uttar Pradesh, were arrested in Banaskantha district, the official said.

The duo had allegedly procured weapons from Hanumangadh in Rajasthan and supplied them to Saiyed, Joshi said.

“The preliminary probe has revealed that the accused had recced several sensitive locations in Lucknow, Delhi and Ahmedabad. When questioned about the source of weapons, they disclosed their handler sends the arms consignment via drone across the Pakistan border,” he said.

The official said the trio have been booked under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA), Bharatiya Nyay Sanhita and Arms Act, and Saiyed has been remanded in ATS custody till November 17, while the two others will be produced before a court on Sunday.

Whether they are involved with the ISKP is a matter of investigation, he said, adding that the Gujarat ATS was also investigating the case in different states.