NIA scaled up crackdown on terror networks in 2023

New Delhi, Dec 31 (PTI) The National Investigation Agency (NIA) scaled up its crackdown against terror networks this year, conducting over 1000 raids after registering 68 cases and arresting 625 accused across the country, an official said on Sunday.

The anti-terror federal agency also achieved a stupendous 94.70 per cent conviction rate with 74 accused sentenced in various cases, the official said.

The official said another highlight of the NIA action in 2023 was multiple raids conducted to identify suspects behind the attacks on High Commissions of India in Ottawa and London and Consulate General in San Francisco that involved criminal trespass, vandalism, damage to public property, and attempts to cause hurt to Indian officials and damage the Consulate building through arson.

The agency identified 43 suspects behind these attacks using several innovative methods of investigation, including crowd-sourcing of information while investigating the larger conspiracy.

“The attacks on the High Commissions of India in Ottawa and London, as well as on the Consulate General of India, San Francisco, USA, also remained the focus of the NIA actions offences against Indian interests abroad through the year, which witnessed more than 50 raids and searches as part of the agency’s efforts to unravel the conspiracy behind the attacks on Indian Missions abroad,” the NIA Spokesperson said.

She said the NIA has stepped up its investigation in these cases in recent months and examined more than 80 persons in India suspected to be part of the conspiracy.

Besides getting five of India’s most wanted, including Arsh Dala and Rinda, listed as “individual terrorists”, four terror outfits were banned by the Centre in 2023 on NIA’s proposal, the official said.

The official said a total of 68 cases were registered this year as the agency went against ‘Jihadis’, operatives of terrorist outfits active in Punjab, Naxals and gangsters in a big way in 2023.

These cases encompass 18 Jihadi terror cases in multiple states, three cases from Jammu and Kashmir, 12 cases of LWE, seven cases involving terrorist and organised criminal activity in Punjab, five cases of the Northeast, and two cases related to Fake Indian Currency Notes (FICN).

A total of 1040 pan-India searches and raids were conducted in the outgoing year against 957 the previous year, leading to the arrest of 625 accused – 28 per cent more than 490 arrested in 2022, the agency said, adding the arrested include 47 absconders, including five deported from the Philippines and the United Arab Emirates (UAE).

The agency arrested 65 accused in ISIS cases, 114 arrested for jihadi terror cases, 45 accused of human trafficking cases, 28 accused of terrorist and organized criminal activity and 76 accused of Left-Wing Extremism (LWE) cases.

As many as 513 accused were chargesheeted during 2023, against 459 in 2022, the official said.

The agency said Rs 56 crore worth of assets belonging to the accused and suspects were attached as part of a strategy to squeeze terror funding and dismantle transnational terror-criminal networks.

“In 2022, the agency had attached a total of 37 properties worth Rs. 10.53 crore, while in 2023, the figure went up to 240 (including 156 bank accounts) with a total value of Rs. 55.90 crore.

“These properties belonged to the accused and suspects involved in terrorism, LWE, explosives and other prominent cases. The attachments, made under various provisions of UA(P)A, included 12 properties (of which four were bank accounts), worth Rs. 1.5 crore, of six listed ‘Individual Terrorists’,” she said.

The NIA achieved a “stupendous” 94.70 per cent conviction rate, with 74 accused sentenced in various cases in the outgoing year, the official said

“The number of persons chargesheeted and convicted stood, respectively, at 513 and 74, as against 459 and 79 in 2022. The 74 accused convicted during 2023 were sentenced to various quantums of ‘Rigorous Imprisonment’ and ‘Fines’ as punishment,” she said.

The agency said massive crackdowns across states were conducted to bust ISIS and Hizb-ut-Tahrir terror modules.

A two-day anti-terror conference was organised in November to strengthen, synchronise and boost nationwide response to terror, the official said.

The agency arrested 47 suspects, 14 more than the last year, who were on the run.

“One of the biggest breakthroughs in this regard came with the arrest of a key absconding accused in the Attari border heroin seizure case, involving smuggling of over 102 kgs of the narcotics from Afghanistan via the India-Pak border.

“Also, arrests made upon deportation and extradition signify NIA’s commitment to pursuing offenders across its international borders. While Amritpal Singh alias Ammy, Amrik Singh, Manpreet Singh alias Peeta and Mandeep Singh were deported from the Philippines, Vikram Brar was arrested upon deportation from the UAE,” she said.

The number of searches and raids by the NIA also recorded a significant increase over the previous year, going up from 957 in 2022 to 1040 in 2023.

The agency’s crackdown on violent Jihad across India proved to be a huge accomplishment for the NIA during 2023, which saw several modules of the banned global ISIS being busted through nationwide raids and searches, she said.

“A total of 15 accused were arrested in December, following raids at 44 locations in Maharashtra and Karnataka, which also led to the seizure of huge amounts of incriminating materials.

“A similar crackdown led to the arrest of eight operatives of the ISIS Ballari module on 18th December, thus enabling the NIA to foil the banned global terrorist organisations’ plans to carry out a series of terror acts, especially IED blasts, across the country. Crackdowns were also carried out against such radicalised ISIS and HuT modules in Jabalpur and Bhopal in separate cases in September,” she said.

The NIA action on the terrorist-gangster nexus resulted in the registration of two cases, charge-sheeting of 55 persons, 253 raids, 27 arrests and the attachment of 18 properties in 2023.

“Further, consistent coordination with international agencies has resulted in action against foreign nodes of the Syndicate. The arrest of Deepak Ranga, the prime accused in the RPG attack on the intelligence headquarters of Punjab Police, has been one of the most significant achievements of the NIA against terrorist-gangster syndicates,” she said.

Ranga was wanted in several cases of terrorism and criminal acts being the alleged chief executioner of terrorist activities of Harwinder Singh Sandhu alias Rinda who is based in Pakistan and Lakhbir Singh Landa who is based in Canada- both are members of the proscribed terrorist organisation Babbar Khalsa International (BKI) and both are designated ‘Individual Terrorists’.

“Another significant action against the terrorist gangster syndicate was the arrest of Manpreet Peeta, the right-hand man of Designated ‘Individual Terrorist’ Arsh Dala who was running widespread terrorist and extortion activities for Arsh Dala while based in the Philippines,” she said.

Another target category for NIA during the year was Left-Wing Extremism, with massive crackdowns carried out against cadres and sympathisers of the banned CPI-Maoist and People’s Liberation Front of India (PLFI), she said.

“Two accused were arrested in one such crackdown, involving raids across four states in an extortion and levy collection case, on 15th December. Besides an Indian Army uniform, arms and ammunition, digital devices and documents along with gold and silver jewellery as well as cash were seized during the raids,” she said.

The NIA arrested Dinesh Gope, the PLF supremo, a splinter group of CPI (Maoist), in May 2023 who was on the run for almost two decades and wanted in more than 150 cases of state police as well as the NIA, and was carrying a cumulative reward of Rs 30 lakh announced by the state police and NIA for his capture.

The year 2023 also witnessed a sharp focus by the NIA on countering human trafficking involving Bangladesh and Myanmar nationals at the Indo-Bangladesh border, she said.

The agency managed to get six individuals, namely Mohammed Amin Khubaiab alias Abu Khubalab alias Pinna alias Muhammed Amin Butt, Arbaz Ahmad Mir, Dr. Asif Maqbool Dar, Arshdeep Singh Gill alias Arsh Dala, Harwinder Singh Sandhu alias Rinda and Lakhbir Singh Landa, designated as ‘Individual Terrorists’ by the Union Government in 2023.

In addition, four terrorist organisations – The Resistance Force (TRF), People’s Anti-Fascists Front (PAFF), Jammu & Kashmir Ghanzavi Force (JKGF) and Khalistan Tiger Force (KTF)) – have been banned in response to the proposal made by the NIA.

“The agency is actively pursuing necessary actions against these designated individuals and terrorist organisations to effectively counter their activities,” she said.