Special court of National Investigation Agency (NIA) has sentenced 4 convicts in the ‘Voice of Hind’ terror conspiracy case of banned terrorist organization Islamic State (ISIS). The court has sentenced 3 convicts Omar Nisar alias Qasim Khorasani, Rameez Ahmed Lone and Tanveer Ahmed Bhat to 6 years of rigorous imprisonment each, while Afshan Parvez Zarabi has been sentenced to 5 years of rigorous imprisonment. Separate fines have also been imposed on all four.
NIA Special Court-01 located in Rouse Avenue District Court complex gave this decision on Monday. The court has imposed a fine of Rs 36 thousand on Umar Nisar, Rs 31 thousand on Rameez Ahmed Lone, Rs 23 thousand on Tanveer Ahmed Bhat and Rs 9 thousand on Afshan Parvez Jarabi. The sentences of all the culprits will run together.
Earlier, on September 17, the special court had convicted all four accused. The court had found him guilty under various sections of the Criminal Conspiracy and Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA) and the Indian Penal Code (IPC).
Conspiracy to radicalize youth and recruit them into ISIS
According to NIA, this case is related to the conspiracy of ISIS. Under this, efforts were being made to radicalize the youth in India and recruit them into the organization for violent activities. For this, terrorists associated with ISIS, along with their network present in India, had launched an online propaganda campaign. According to the investigating agency, members of this network used fake online identities to spread ISIS ideology and propaganda material. Along with this, funding for terrorist activities was also being done at the grassroots level.
Used to prepare material for ‘Voice of Hind’
NIA investigation revealed that the accused were involved in preparing, editing, publishing and online circulating the content of ISIS’s India-centric propaganda magazine ‘Saut-al-Hind’ i.e. ‘Voice of Hind’. The aim of this network was to radicalize Indian youth and send them to join ISIS in Syria, Iraq, Afghanistan and other conflict areas.
Punishment given based on the role of the accused
The court found that the four convicts had played a significant role in furthering the activities and ideology of ISIS. Umar Nisar alias Qasim Khurasani: Found involved in spreading ISIS propaganda material and radicalizing and recruiting youth through ‘Voice of Hind’ magazine, Telegram and other online mediums.
Rameez Ahmed Lone and Tanveer Ahmed Bhat: Found guilty of propagating the ideology of ISIS and inspiring youth to join the organization.
Afshan Parvez Zarabi: Found involved in publishing and circulating articles of ‘Voice of Hind’ and propagating the ideology of ISIS through Telegram channels.
Digital materials and documents related to ISIS recovered in the raid
NIA had seized a large amount of digital material and documents during the investigation. These included PDF files of ‘Voice of Hind’ magazine, posters of slain terrorists, radical literature, web links related to ISIS propaganda, T-shirts with the organization’s flag and chats and audio recordings related to purchasing weapons. In addition, materials related to media, ideology and psychological warfare, and ISIS banners and flags were also recovered.
NIA has filed chargesheet and four supplementary chargesheets against a total of eight accused in this case. According to the agency, the investigation has revealed the role of the accused in furthering the activities of the banned organization through the ‘Voice of Hind’ module. Four accused have been sentenced in the case, while the case against the other accused is continuing in the court.
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SK Sharma is a content writer who writes on news, entertainment, and lifestyle topics. She has over four years of experience and is known for conveying information in simple and clear language.
