Daijiworld Media Network - New Delhi
New Delhi, Sep 28: A Special NIA Court in Delhi has sentenced four operatives of the proscribed terrorist organisation Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS) to varying jail terms of up to six years in the 'Voice of Hind' terror conspiracy case.
Umar Nisar alias Qasim Khurasani, Rameez Ahmad Lone and Tanveer Ahmad Bhat were each sentenced to six years of rigorous imprisonment, while Afshan Parvaiz Jarabi was sentenced to five years of rigorous imprisonment.
The court also imposed fines of Rs 36,000 on Umar, Rs 31,000 on Rameez, Rs 23,000 on Tanveer and Rs 9,000 on Afshan, the National Investigation Agency (NIA) said.
The Special Court had convicted the four accused on September 17, finding them guilty of criminal conspiracy and various offences under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act and the IPC relating to the dissemination and propagation of ISIS material, radicalisation and recruitment of youth, and furthering the activities of the proscribed terrorist organisation.
The case, registered as RC-14/2021/NIA/DLI, relates to an alleged conspiracy by ISIS to radicalise and recruit impressionable youth in India to wage violent jihad against the Indian State, the NIA said.
According to the agency, ISIS terrorists operating from various conflict zones, along with its cadres in India, created a network using pseudo online identities to disseminate ISIS propaganda. On-ground terror financing activities were also used to supplement the organised online campaign.
The NIA investigation revealed the involvement of cyber entities and their associates in creating, editing, publishing and disseminating the India-centric ISIS propaganda magazine "Sawt-al-Hind (The Voice of Hind)" through online platforms.
The network was also involved in motivating and facilitating Indians to undertake so-called "hijrat", or migration, to ISIS conflict theatres in Syria, Iraq, Afghanistan and other areas, the agency said.
During the investigation, the NIA recovered and seized a large volume of incriminating documents and digital material, including PDFs of "Voice of Hind", posters of slain terrorists, radicalising literature, web links to ISIS propaganda, an ISIS-flag T-shirt, chats and audio recordings relating to weapon procurement, and material linked to media, ideological and psychological warfare. ISIS banners and flags were also seized.
The court found the specific involvement of the four convicts in furthering the activities of ISIS.
Umar was found involved in disseminating and propagating ISIS material through the 'Voice of Hind' magazine, Telegram and other online channels with the aim of radicalising and recruiting youth.
Rameez and Tanveer were found involved in preaching ISIS ideology and radicalising and recruiting youth to join the organisation.
Afshan was found involved in publishing and disseminating articles for the 'Voice of Hind' magazine through Telegram channels, besides propagating ISIS ideology and inviting youth to join ISIS, the NIA said.
The agency filed a chargesheet and four supplementary chargesheets against eight accused persons. The investigation established their involvement in the activities of the ISIS 'Voice of Hind' module and their role in furthering the objectives of the proscribed organisation through online activities.
The trial against the remaining accused persons is continuing.