Guwahati: The Siliguri corridor, a key link connecting the Northeast to the rest of India, was targeted by a sleeper cell of Ansarullah Bangla Team (ABT), a terror group linked to Al-Qaeda in the Indian Subcontinent (AQIS).
Authorities in Assam, Meghalaya, Tripura, and other northeastern states are on high alert due to the corridor’s strategic importance.
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The Assam Police’s Special Task Force (STF) recently arrested eight members of ABT from West Bengal, Kerala, and Assam, uncovering a transnational network. ABT, a splinter group of Jamaat-ul-Mujahideen, is banned in Bangladesh, India, the US, and the UK.
A joint operation by Assam and West Bengal STF led to the arrest of two individuals, Minarul Sheikh and Md Abbas Ali, in Murshidabad, West Bengal.
The group’s plan was to recruit youth by exploiting local economic and sectarian issues. Saad Radi, a Bangladeshi agent, was sent to lead the recruitment drive, traveling through West Bengal, Kerala, and Assam before his capture.
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The group aimed to use the Siliguri corridor as a base for terror activities. The STF is currently investigating key evidence, including phones, documents, and a thumb drive, to uncover more about the group’s plans.
The arrests come amidst rising tensions linked to intercommunal violence in Bangladesh and the growing presence of extremist activities in the region.