ISIS radicals behind Rameshwaram Cafe blast: NIA chargesheet

New Delhi [India]September 9 (ANI): Two of the main accused in the high-profile Rameshwaram Cafe blast case in Bengaluru were ISIS radicals and had previously conspired to 'hijra' to ISIS-held areas in Syria, according to a chargesheet filed by the National Investigation Agency (NIA).

These radicals, according to the NIA, were Mussavir Hussain Shazib and Abdul Matheen Ahmed Taaha. Both accused had been on the run since 2020 after the Al-Hind module was blown up. They were arrested from their hideout in West Bengal 42 days after the Rameshwaram cafe blast.

The NIA investigation revealed that Shazib was the man who planted the bomb.

“Both Shazib and Taaha, hailing from Shivamogga district of Karnataka, were ISIS radicals and had previously conspired to migrate to ISIS areas in Syria. They were actively involved in radicalising other gullible Muslim youth to ISIS ideology and Maaz Muneer Ahmed and Muzammil Shareef were among these youth,” the NIA said in a statement after filing chargesheet against four accused on Monday.

Besides Shazib and Taaha, the other two accused are Maaz Muneer Ahmed and Muzammil Shareef. They have been charged under relevant sections of the Indian Penal Code (IPC), Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, Control of Explosives Act and Prevention of Destruction and Loss of Property (PDLP) Act. All four have been arrested earlier and are currently remanded in judicial custody. The IED blast that took place at Rameshwaram Cafe, Brookfield, ITPL Bengaluru on March 1 this year left nine people injured and the hotel premises badly damaged.

The NIA, which launched an investigation into the case on March 3, further stated that Taaha and Shazib fraudulently obtained Indian SIM cards and Indian bank accounts and also used various Indian and Bangladeshi identity documents downloaded from the dark web.

Investigations further revealed that Taaha was introduced by an ex-convict, Shoaib Ahmed Mirza, to Mohammed Shaheed Faisal, a fugitive in the Lashkar-e-Taiba Bengaluru conspiracy case. “Taaha introduced Faisal, his contact, then to Mehaboob Pasha, an accused in the Al-Hind ISIS module case, and Khaja Mohideen, the Amir of ISIS South India, and later also to Maaz Muneer Ahmed,” the NIA said. The NIA said Taaha and Shazib were funded by their contact through cryptocurrencies, which Taaha converted into fiat using various Telegram-based P2P platforms.

“The funds were used by the accused to commit various acts of violence in Bengaluru. These included a failed IED attack on the state BJP office in Malleshwaram, Bengaluru, on the day of Pran Pratishtha ceremony in Ayodhya on January 22, 2024. After that, the two main accused had planned the blast at the Rameshwaram cafe,” the agency added. (ANI)