Hyderabad: Officials found that Janood-ul-Khalifa-e-Hind operative Rafeeq Ahmed alias Asghar, who was arrested on Saturday in Bengaluru by the TS Counter Intelligence cell, was a recruiter for terror outfits and was given the duty of picking up potential fidayeen suicide bombers and fighters.
Officials who interrogated him at a forensic lab of the National Investigation Agency in Medvala, Bengaluru, suspect that Ashgar had visited Pak-Occupied Kashmir twice in the last 10 years for terror training and was working with the al-Qaeda.
Asghar tried to recruit terrorists at Tumakuru
An official source told DC that Janood-ul-Khalifa-e-Hind operator Rafeeq Ahmed alias Asghar had met youths from various parts of the country twice at Tumakuru to encourage them to join terror organisations.
“We are collecting information on who attended the meetings and how many were recruited by Ashgar as fidayeen,” said an official. Ashgar’s social networking accounts are being checked for clues.
The source said that Ashgar frequently met the other four suspects — Sayed Mujahid, 33, Asif Ali alias Arman Saani, 21, Suhail Ahmed, 23, and Muhammed Abdul Ahad, 46, — who were nabbed by the NIA and police on Thursday.
An official said that Ashgar kept a low profile at Parappana in Bengaluru.
where he stayed for five years. "Locals said during our investigation that he used to go out at around 8 am and no one knew when he returned," the official said.
The Parappana police on Sunday registered an attempt to murder case against Ashgar for attacking Telangana police constable Srinivas under Section 306.
Asghar tries to commit suicide
Asghar alias Rafeeq Khan, who allegedly attacked Telangana counter intelligence cell constable Srinivas on Saturday attempted suicide by swallowing stones during the interrogation on Sunday.
The TS police raided his house and arrested Asghar and his wife. “He tried to swallow pieces of stone. After medical examination he was sent to judicial remand,” said Bengaluru police commissioner N.S. Megharikh. Constable Srinivas is now recovering.
Rafeeq, who earlier worked with the Indian Mujahideen is wanted in the 2008 Ahmedabad blast case and many other terror conspiracies across the country.
It is learnt that Rafeeq was also in touch with Yousuf alias Shafi Armar, the ISIS head of India in Syria and Asgar was assigned missions in South India.
