A Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) operative accused of plotting attacks in India while operating out of Bangladesh has been arrested near the Delhi border, officials said on Monday.
The accused, Shabbir Ahmad Lone alias Raja alias Kashmiri, is a resident of Kangan in Jammu and Kashmir’s Srinagar district. He was arrested by Delhi Police's Special Cell in coordination with central agencies after being on the radar for his alleged role in running India-focused terror operations.
Officials said that Lone had been based in Bangladesh, where he was handling Lashkar's anti-India activities under the direction of Pakistan's intelligence agency, ISI. He is accused of recruiting Bangladeshi nationals, including those residing illegally in India, to execute terror plots while masking Pakistan's involvement.
The arrest came days after security agencies busted a Lashkar-linked module operating across Delhi and parts of South India. That module had allegedly put up anti-India posters at several locations in Delhi and Kolkata, pointing to an attempt to spread propaganda alongside operational groundwork.
Officials said Lone is a trained militant of Lashkar-e-Taiba who underwent both Daura-e-Aam (basic) and Daura-e-Khaas (advanced) training at a terror camp in Muzaffarabad. His links with the outfit's top leadership date back nearly two decades.
Lone was first arrested by the Special Cell in 2007 along with a heavy cache of arms and ammunition, including an AK-47 rifle and grenades. At the time, officials had established his direct links with Jamaat-ud-Dawa chief and 26/11 Mumbai attacks mastermind Hafiz Saeed, as well as Lashkar commander Zaki-ur-Rehman Lakhvi.
Lone remained lodged in Tihar Jail until 2018 before securing bail.
According to officials, he later resurfaced in Bangladesh, where he allegedly rebuilt Lashkar networks and continued coordinating operations targeting India. His role, they said, reflects a cross-border command structure with handlers in Pakistan and operatives positioned in Bangladesh.
Agencies are now interrogating Lone to map the full extent of the network, including recruitment channels, funding routes and potential targets in India.
Source: India Today