After the arrest of Tehseen Akhtar alias Monu head of India Mujahideen operations by the Delhi Police questions are being raised whether it’s the end of the road for the terror outfit? Akhtar has been known for executing several terror attacks in the country. Akhtar reportedly worked closely with IM founder Yaseen Bhatkal since 2010, and after the latter’s arrest, he led the IM operations in India and allegedly masterminded the October 2013 Patna rally blast which was addressed by BJP leader Narendra Modi.
Tehseen Akhtar belonged to the Darbhanga module of the banned terrorist outfit and was heading IM operations in India after Yasin Bhatkal’s arrest in August last year. Akhtar is being questioned by a joint team of Delhi Police Special Cell and central intelligence agencies.
Mohammad Zarar Siddibappa alias Yasin Bhatkal, after his arrest on August 29 last year, had told investigators that Akhtar, 23, was the operational India head of the IM, dealing directly with Karachi-based top IM operative Riyaz Bhatkal.
The National Investigation Agency had declared a reward of Rs. 10 lakh for information on Akhtar’s whereabouts. He is originally a resident of Maniarpur village in Samastipur district of Bihar.
“Tehseen stayed in India for a few months and was planning terror attacks during Lok Sabha polls after receiving lakhs of rupees in hawala transactions,” said a source.
The Delhi Police arrested four Indian Mujahideen terrorists in Rajasthan, who were planning a terror attack during Lok Sabha elections. The police made the arrest after they got specific input from the Intelligence Bureau.
The arrested terrorists were identified as Waqas, Mahroof, Mehraj and Saquib.
Tehseen alias Monu was also involved in the 2010 bombing at Varanasi’s Sheetla Ghat during the evening ‘aarti’, the cooker bomb blast outside Jama Masjid in Delhi the same year, the 2011 serial blasts in Mumbai’s Zaveri Bazaar, Opera House and Dadar West – as well as the 2012 low-intensity blasts in Pune, the twin bombings in Hyderabad in 2013 and the Bodh Gaya blasts in 2013.
All these terror attacks left a total of 43 dead and 253 injured.
A Maharashtra ATS official on the condition of anonymity said, “We cannot say that Indian Mujahideen will weaken after Tehseen’s arrest as the outfit has been regularly recruiting people. They are always in contact with SIMI people and their main founders are located in Karachi. If one member is arrested then he is replaced by another. Hence we cannot say that Indian Mujahideen will cease to exist.”
