An NIA Special Court at Rouse Avenue on Monday sentenced 4 operatives of the proscribed terrorist organisation Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS) in connection with the ‘Voice of Hind’ terror conspiracy case. This case was registered by the National Investigation Agency (NIA) in 2021.
The accused pleaded guilty, and the Court found them guilty of criminal conspiracy and various offences under the anti-terror law UAPA and the Indian Penal Code (IPC) relating to dissemination and propagation of ISIS material, radicalisation and recruitment of youth, and furthering the activities of the proscribed terrorist organisation. the 4 convicts pleaded guilty to the charges after around 5 years of custody While framing of charges. Thereafter, they were convicted on September 17 and sentenced on September 28. After the conviction and sentence of 4 accsued who pleaded guilty, the trial against the remaining accused persons is pending. Special NIA Judge Vikas Dhull sentenced Umar Nisar alias Qasim Khurasani, Rameez Ahmad Lone and Tanveer Ahmad Bhat to 6 years of rigorous imprisonment each for offences under sections 17, 18, 18A, 18B, 19, 38, 39 of UAPA and sections 153A and 153B of IPC. The court has imposed fines of Rs 36,000 upon Umar Nisar, Rs 31,000 upon Rameez Ahmad Lone, Rs 23,000 upon Tanveer Ahmad Bhat and Rs 9,000 upon Afshan Parvaiz Jarabi, respectively.
NIA had stated that the investigation revealed the involvement of cyber entities and their associates in the content creation, editing, publication and dissemination of the India-centric ISIS propaganda magazine “Sawt-al-Hind (The Voice of Hind)” through online platforms. The network was also involved in motivating and facilitating Indians for so-called “hijrat” (migration) to ISIS conflict theatres in Syria, Iraq, Afghanistan and other areas.
