Lucknow: Sleuths of the National Investigation Agency (NIA) have reached Lucknow to investigate the killing of the ISIS terrorist by the Anti-Terrorist Squad of Uttar Pradesh police early today. A senior police official told UNI here that the killed terrorist was a member of the Lucknow-Kanpur Khorasan Module of ISIS which has its headquarters in Afghanistan. The Khorasan module operates only in India- Pakistan and Bangladesh. Official said that in all, 11 to 12 people are suspected to be a part of this Module.
Though the security personnel have arrested seven terrorists and killed one, four were absconding. One of the absconding terrorists has been identified as Rocky, alias Ranawat. ATS commandos had launched an operation in Haji Colony of Kakori police station area of the state capital yesterday afternoon and gunned down a suspected ISIS ultra Mohammad Saifullah, alias Ali, linked to the Bhopal-Ujjain train blast after the 11-hour encounter.
During the operation, the NSG was kept on standby and a high alert sounded in UP when the state is going for last phase of polls in 40 Assembly seats today. Claimed to be the first ISIS attack in the country, last night it was reported that the ultra was killed in the evening only but the formal announcement came later.
During the search operation, 8 automatic pistols, 32 bore, ISIS flag, maps of India and Israel, aluminium nitrate and other stuff required for bomb making were recovered and 71 rounds were fired by Saifullah during the encounter. Three of the pistols had cartridge stuck in them indicating that he was firing from multiple pistols simultaneously. As many as 630 live cartridges, 6 gold coins of 24 caret-- 3 weighing 10 grams and the rest 3.5 grams each-- besides passports, mobile SIMs and cash of Rs 2000 notes in large number were recovered.
The encounter which started at 1530 hrs yesterday, ended this morning at 0230 hrs , announced UP DGP Javeed Ahmed here today. Admitting that the terrorist Saifullah, who was holed up and later neutralised after being given enough time to surrender, was linked to the ISIS faction, the DGP told reporters here that heavy firearms and explosives were recovered from the house.
Saifullah fired 60 rounds before he was eliminated. IG ATS Aseem Arun said that the recovered items from the room of the terrorists showed that they have been operating since long and were planning for a big attack. "We tried to catch him alive but could not do so as it would have given lead to the other gang members," the IG said. Three arrests have been made so far in UP, including two from Kanpur and one from Etawah, in connection with Saifullah. The arrested were identified as Faizal Khan and Mohammad Imran from Kanpur and one Fakre Alam from Etawah yesterday.
Madhya Pradesh police had already arrested three members of the Khorasan module of the ISIS in Piparia after the train blast on Bhopal -Ujjain passenger in which nine passengers were injured yesterday. The arrested have been identified as Danish and Atish of Kanpur and Sayeed Mir of Aligarh. (UNI)
