New Delhi: Some were involved in the arms trade, others in narcotics. Some, already indoctrinated by Pakistani national Shahzad Bhatti, were awaiting orders, while many were simply ardent followers on social media, constantly engaging with the Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI)-backed terror network head. For 51 young men in the Capital, all the many ways of engaging with Bhatti came to an end when the Delhi Police’s Special Cell picked them up in a 24-hour special operation.
Part of a larger operation launched by the Union home ministry against Bhatti’s network, the Delhi Police effort was no mean feat; it meant eyes glued to all social media platforms, ears to ground, and thorough tracking of all associates of Bhatti gang members.
In the run-up to Independence Day, the Special Cell made an exhaustive list of names of all followers and associates of ISI-backed Bhatti, a Pakistani gangster based out of Brazil. The Ministry of Home Affairs has recently proposed his designation as a terrorist, considering his growing footprint and involvement in several terror acts across the country.
According to a senior official aware of the matter, a coordinated operation was conducted between 11 and 12 August. “All ranges of the Special Cell were given a list of names who had to be picked up,” said the official. This list contained names of people involved with Bhatti in various capacities. Within 24 hours, several police teams had nabbed 51 people from the east, north-east and outer districts of Delhi, the officer said.
Those arrested were “young, unemployed men with strong affiliations and affliction with criminal activities”, he said. “Depending on their offences, these people were divided into groups and individually interrogated, after which some were arrested and preventive action was taken against others.”
According to another source, the police first interrogated Bhatti’s associates who were involved in arms trade. “We arrested all of Bhatti’s associates with weapons and seized several pistols, cartridges and grenades of Pakistani make, and interrogated them to determine the route of trade,” said the second officer. Subsequently they were booked under several sections of the Arms Act. The police also arrested several individuals involved in the narcotics trade, he added.
“We had identified several individuals who were being indoctrinated by Bhatti. These were individuals who had not yet committed any crime but were awaiting Bhatti’s orders,” said the officer. The police learnt during interrogation that the accused had been informed that for each criminal act, they would be paid between Rs 3,000 and 5,000.
During its day-long operation, the police also identified several of Bhatti’s social media followers who were actively engaging with him. “Most of these individuals are young, unemployed men in Delhi, who were impressed by Bhatti’s grand lifestyle and his stature in the world of crime,” said the officer.
Individual First Information Reports (FIRs) have been registered in each case. The police also took preventive measures like forfeiture of property, execution of bond for good behaviour up to three years, and preventive arrests under the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita 2023.
(Edited by Nardeep Singh Dahiya)
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