Chennai: National Investigation Agency (NIA) has filed chargesheet against former Pakistan diplomat Amir Zubair Siddiqui, Counsellor (visa) at the Pakistan High Commission in Colombo, on charge of terror plot and conspiracy to attack vital establishments in India. Special Public Prosecutor for NIA, C.S.S. Pillai has filed the chargesheet before the special court for NIA Cases, Poonamallee, on Thursday.
According to prosecution, while serving in Colombo from 2009 to 2016, Siddiqui had planned to attack vital installations in Chennai and other places with the help of spies. He sent several persons including Mohamed Zakir Hussain, Arun Selvaraj and Sivabalan, to India to carry out explosions and float fake currencies.
Siddiqui allegedly recruited spies and instructed them to collect information about defence installations, movement of arms and nuclear establishments. Among the installations, they planned to attack the US consulate in Chennai, the Israeli Consulate in Bengaluru, Eastern Naval Command Head Quarter, Visakhapatnam and ports in the country.
The Q-Branch-CID police arrested Hussain in 2013 on charge of indulging in spying activities as an agent of Pakistan. During the probe, Hussain revealed that Siddiqui had assigned the task to him, when the latter served in Colombo as a Pakistan diplomat.
Following investigation in Sri Lanka and other countries, the special NIA team collected incriminating evidence against Siddiqui and prepared the charge
sheet. Meanwhile, after the matter came out in the open Pakistan recalled Siddiqui to Pakistan from Colombo. When the matter came up for hearing before the Special Court for NIA cases on Thursday, Pillai filed the chargesheet.
Pillai said as per procedure, the court is likely to issue notice to Siddiqui. If the notice is not served to him in Pakistan, warrant would be issued to him. And, if the warrant also not evoked response, he would be declared as a proclaimed offender by the court and later NIA would seek the help of Interpol.
