New Delhi: The Special Cell of Delhi Police has busted a Pakistan-backed terror module led by gangster-turned-terrorist Shahzad Bhatti, currently based in the neighbouring country, an official said Sunday.
Police have arrested three key operatives of the module – one each from Punjab, Madhya Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh – and seized a semi-automatic pistol, 10 live cartridges, and mobile phones containing incriminating chats and reconnaissance videos from their possession, Additional Commissioner of Police (Special Cell), Pramod Singh Kushwah, said.
“The module was involved in the November 25 grenade attack outside the City police station in Punjab’s Gurdaspur, which was carried out on Bhatti’s instructions. Bhatti has been coordinating operations from Pakistan using encrypted platforms and social media channels, the Additional CP said.
“Those arrested have been identified as Vikas Prajapati alias Betu (19), a resident of Datia in Madhya Pradesh, Hargunpreet Singh alias Gurkaranpreet Singh (19) from Firozpur in Punjab, and Asif alias Arish (22) from Bijnaur in Uttar Pradesh, the officer said.
He said the breakthrough came after a team started tracking Bhatti’s activities, including his online communication patterns.
It was found that Prajapati, wanted in an arms-smuggling case, was in frequent contact with Bhatti on social media. Prajapati’s location kept shifting between Gurdaspur and Delhi, with Bhatti frequently instructing him to switch off his cellphone to avoid tracking, the officer said.
“Prajapati was arrested in Madhya Pradesh after a two-day manhunt. His interrogation revealed the module’s modus operandi. Bhatti and his Pakistan-based associates targeted young Indians on social media, luring them with money and an aura of gangster glorification, the Additional CP said.
They selected the recruits by scanning their profiles, gave remote instructions for reconnaissance, arranged payments digitally, and used them as disposable foot soldiers for terror strikes, the officer said.
Prajapati told police that he contacted Bhatti through social media after being influenced by his online persona.
Bhatti allegedly used Prajapati to receive an arms parcel in Gurdaspur, which contained a grenade. On Bhatti’s instructions, Prajapati conducted a recce of the City police station in Gurdaspur and the Town Hall police station in Amritsar, before handing over the grenade to Hargunpreet Singh and his associate.
During questioning, Hargunpreet, a 12th pass from Firozpur, confessed that he carried out the grenade attack November 25 outside the City police station while riding pillion on a motorcycle driven by an associate.
The third accused, Asif, was also recruited via social media and had been instructed to prepare for a similar grenade attack in Punjab, for which Bhatti shared location maps and photographs with him, the officer said.
Search operations are underway to trace the other operatives of the module, police said.
