New Delhi, Nov 28 (IANS): In a major crackdown in connection with the terror-gangster nexus case, the National Investigation Agency (NIA) on Wednesday conducted extensive searches at premises linked with associates of Davinder Bambiha syndicate at nine locations in the states of Punjab, Haryana and Uttar Pradesh.
An official said that NIA teams conducted searches at the premises of suspects in the terror-gangster syndicate case in Palwal, Faridabad and Gurugram districts of Haryana, Jalandhar district of Punjab, and Mathura district of Uttar Pradesh.
"A host of incriminating materials, including mobiles/ digital devices, banking transactions and property related documents, were seized during the searches," a statement read.
"The searches were part of NIA's continuous crackdown on terror outfits engaged in criminal conspiracies to smuggle terrorist hardware, such as arms, ammunition, narcotics, explosives etc., into India. NIA investigations in the case RC 22/2023/NIA/DLI, registered on the directions of the Ministry of Home Affairs, government of India, further show large-scale attempts by these organisations and terrorists to raise funds for carrying out terror acts on Indian soil," the statement read.
Further investigations into the case are underway.
The National Investigation Agency (NIA) is India's specialised counter-terrorism law enforcement agency which is empowered to deal with the investigation into terror-related crimes across states.
The NIA is empowered to investigate cases that involve threats to the country's sovereignty, security, and integrity.
The Agency is also authorised to conduct searches, make seizures and arrests, and also collect evidence and maintain a database of terrorist organisations and their members.
The agency came into existence with the enactment of the National Investigation Agency Act 2008 by the Parliament on December 31, 2008. The Act was passed after the 26/11 terror attacks that had left Mumbai -- the country's financial capital -- in tatters.
The NIA has its headquarters in Delhi, and it also has branches across many Indian cities, such as Hyderabad, Guwahati, Kochi, Lucknow, Mumbai, Kolkata, Raipur, Jammu, Chandigarh, Ranchi, Chennai and Imphal.