UP ATS arrests two men ‘recruited by Pakistani ISI agents to plan terror attacks’

Shahzad Bhatti hand

ATS officials further claimed these intelligence inputs pointed to the hand of alleged ‘ISI proxy’ Bhatti and his terrorist network who were misleading Indian youth through social media, offering financial incentives, and radicalising them to prepare for attacks on important and sensitive institutions/persons.

After electronic and physical surveillance, the ATS team arrested Krishna on Tuesday and Daniyal on Wednesday.

The agency claimed the two suspects were in contact with Shahzad Bhatti. (Express photo)

The agency claimed the duo was in contact with Bhatti and his aide Abid Jatt and, on their instructions, were planning attacks on important institutions, police stations, and outposts in UP and other Indian cities. A case has been registered against them at the ATS Police Station, Lucknow.

The evidence

During interrogation of the accused, ATS officials claimed they found phone numbers of the Pakistani gangsters saved in their phones and that they were in contact with Bhatti, Jatt, and one Hammad through social media.

Evidence such as video call recordings and voice notes between them was also found in their phones, officials claimed.

On checking Krishna’s WhatsApp, a group call was found involving Daniyal, Jatt, and other suspicious Indian/foreign mobile numbers, where anti-national discussions took place, the agency claimed.

It further claimed that on the instructions of the Pakistani gangsters, Daniyal made a video of a police station in another state and shared its video and location. He also allegedly shared locations of other important institutions and asked for money and weapons from the gangsters to carry out terror acts.

Officials said Hammad had sent a PDF image of Jatt to Daniyal, instructing him to print 50 copies and paste them at important places.

Officials claimed the Pakistani gangsters had also instructed that a ‘uniformed person’ should be shot and a video be sent to them. A recce video was also found in which Krishna and his two associates were assigned the task of shooting at a person in uniform.

During their interrogation, officials said Daniyal and Krishna reportedly told them that they came in contact with the three gangsters on Instagram. Bhatti told them that if they followed his instructions, he would make them “heroes” in India.

The ATS team claimed to have recovered a country-made 9 mm pistol and cartridges (9 mm) from Daniyal and a country-made .315 bore pistol and cartridges from Krishna.

Delhi link?

Last month, in a similar case in the national capital, the Delhi Police Special Cell claimed to have dismantled a criminal module linked to Bhatti, arresting two operatives from Madhya Pradesh. Police said the duo were allegedly planning terror-style shootings at hotels and clubs in Delhi-NCR.

Bhatti, police said, is suspected to be operating from Dubai. He was allegedly involved in last year’s grenade attack outside the City Police Station in Punjab’s Gurdaspur. He has allegedly been involved in other criminal activities, including bomb-making and the supply of illegal arms and ammunition to India, Dubai, the US, and Canada.