Uttar Pradesh ATS arrests 6 under UAPA for terror; another 2 held on similar charge

The ATS said the six men in custody are suspected to be linked to the PFI. Four men were arrested in Meerut and two in Varanasi.

The ATS said their preliminary inquiry showed that the arrested persons were conspiring for anti-national activities. They were planning activities which, ATS said, could lead to creating enmity between two religions.

Sources said the UP Police had searched the residences of the men two days ago when law enforcement agencies cracked down on the PFI.

The ATS, in a press release, identified the four persons arrested from Meerut as Mohammad Shadab Aziz Qasmi, Maulana Sajid, Mufti Sahzad and Mohammad Islam Qasmi. The case against the four men has been filed at Khar Khauda police station in Meerut.

Police said Shadab and Sajid are from Shamli while Sahzad and Mohammad Islam are residents of Ghaziabad and Muzaffarnagar, respectively.

The ATS said Rizwan Ahmed and Mohammad Shahid were arrested near an under-construction overbridge at Kazzakpura railway crossing in Varanasi. A case against them has been filed at Adampur police station. Rizwan hails from Jaithpura and Shahid from Adampur in Varanasi, the ATS said.

Meanwhile, police have lodged another case against three persons, who are also suspected to be associated with the PFI, at the Kursi police station in Barabanki. Police said they were planning an Islamic State and waging war against the country. A senior police officer said two persons have been arrested so far.