New Delhi: Security agencies have arrested a Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) operative accused of coordinating terror activities in India while operating from Bangladesh. The arrest took place near the Delhi border, officials confirmed on Monday.
The suspect, identified as Shabbir Ahmad Lone, also known as Raja or Kashmiri, hails from Kangan in Srinagar, Jammu and Kashmir. Lone was detained by the Delhi Police Special Cell with support from central agencies. He had previously been apprehended in 2007 with a substantial cache of arms, including an AK-47, and spent a decade in Tihar Jail before his release in 2018.
Authorities said Lone maintained connections with top LeT figures, including Jamaat-ud-Dawa chief Hafiz Saeed and deputy Zaki-ur-Rehman Lakhvi. Trained in both basic and advanced militant courses at a LeT camp in Muzaffarabad, he is now believed to be orchestrating India-bound operations from Bangladesh, allegedly with ISI backing, recruiting Bangladeshi nationals living illegally in India.
The investigation intensified after a CISF shift in-charge reported pro-Pakistan and pro-terror posters at Janpath Metro Station on February 8. A subsequent raid at a rented property in West Bengal uncovered posters, Bangladeshi passports, identity cards, and other evidence.
Officials noted that Lone’s network bears similarities to a “white terror module” exposed last November, linked to a foiled Red Fort blast attempt. Investigators say Lone was planning attacks in India using recruits from Bangladesh.
