New Delhi | The National Investigation Agency (NIA) has taken up a case involving an alleged Pakistan-based network accused of radicalising Indian youths through online platforms and attempting to recruit them for terror-related activities, officials said on Thursday.

The case concerns Pakistan-based gangster Shahzad Bhatti and suspected Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) operatives who allegedly sought to influence Indian youths through social media, with the purported aim of carrying out attacks and disturbing internal peace and communal harmony.

The investigation originated from a First Information Report (FIR) registered by the Uttar Pradesh Anti-Terrorist Squad (ATS) in April this year. Initially, the probe focused on allegations that Pakistani sleeper cells were being established through social media platforms.

The FIR named eight accused, including Bhatti, whom investigators have identified as a Pakistan-based ISI agent. Other Pakistan-based individuals named in the case include Md Hamad Barkati, Abid Jatt, Major Hamid, Major Iqbal and Major Anwar, all suspected of having links to the ISI.

The NIA has also named Tushar Chauhan, alias Hijbullah Ali Khan, a resident of Uttar Pradesh, and Sameer, a Delhi resident, as accused. Both were arrested by the UP ATS in April. According to the ATS investigation, the two allegedly maintained direct contact with Pakistani operatives and were involved in plans for what officials described as a “major disruptive act”.

Investigators suspect that Bhatti, Jatt and radical Pakistani YouTubers, allegedly acting on ISI instructions, were attempting to radicalise Indian youths online and attract recruits through financial incentives. The alleged objective was to create disruption and undermine peace and communal harmony in the country.

Uttar Pradesh Additional Director General of Police (Law and Order) Amitabh Yash had earlier said the network was attempting to exploit social media to influence young people in India.

Wider crackdown on Shahzad Bhatti Network

The NIA investigation comes amid a wider crackdown on the Shahzad Bhatti Network (SBN), which the Union government declared a terrorist organisation under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA) in September. The Ministry of Home Affairs had said in August that security agencies arrested more than 200 alleged SBN operatives across 14 states during coordinated operations ahead of Independence Day.

The network has also come under investigation in Assam. The Assam Police Special Task Force (STF) has arrested five people in connection with the alleged activities of the network.

The latest arrest in the state was made on September 1, when the STF apprehended a 31-year-old resident of Nalbari. Earlier, Akramul Islam of Dhubri, Aminur Rahman of Chirang and Abdul Hussain of Barpeta were arrested on July 25. Fazal Islam Barbhuiyan was arrested from Ramnathpur in Hailakandi district on August 26.

The NIA is now expected to investigate the wider network, its alleged links with Pakistani operatives and the suspected efforts to recruit and radicalise Indian youths online.