Senior Indian Mujahideen Operative’s Capture Sparks Hopes Of Breakthroughs In Investigations And Further Arrests
Who is Yasin Bhatkal
Ahmed Zarar Siddibappa (alias Shahrukh/Imran/Asif/ Ahmed) was born in Bhatkal town near Mangalore in Karnataka on January 15, 1983
Studied till Class 10 but could not pass matriculation. Later took admission in an Islamic institution to become an Aalim (Arabic graduate)
Not related to Riyaz and Iqbal Bhatkal (two other top IM leaders) who are said to be in Pak. Yasin and the Bhatkal brother were neighbours
Can speak Hindi, Kannada, Urdu and local language Nawayati
Was the only IM top shot still operating from India. Was on NIA’s ‘most wanted’ list
Slippery Customer
Went to Dubai in 2005 for a job and stayed a year. Left his father’s place after a personal dispute with him
Hasn’t been in touch with his family since 2006
In 2007, participated in a training session of IM cadre at Karnataka
Came to Mumbai the next year
In 2009, went to Kolkata and was arrested. Let off after sloppy probe
Seen with an IM member in Chennai in 2010
In 2011, he travelled to Delhi, Bihar, Nepal and Mumbai before the Mumbai triple blasts
Went underground after this till his arrest
Intelligent, monitored changes in police tactics, stayed one step ahead
Went to Dubai in 2005 for a job and stayed a year. Left his father’s place after a personal dispute with him
Hasn’t been in touch with his family since 2006
In 2007, participated in a training session of IM cadre at Karnataka
Came to Mumbai the next year
In 2009, went to Kolkata and was arrested. Let off after sloppy probe
Seen with an IM member in Chennai in 2010
In 2011, he travelled to Delhi, Bihar, Nepal and Mumbai before the Mumbai triple blasts
Went underground after this till his arrest
Intelligent, monitored changes in police tactics, stayed one step ahead
His Family
Mother Rehana and father Zarar Siddibapa stay in Makhdoom colony in Bhatkal village
Younger sister and brother, Abdus Samad, 26, stay with them
While on the run in Nov 2011, he married 21-yearold Zaheda Mohammed Irshad in Okhla on the outskirts of Delhi
Mother Rehana and father Zarar Siddibapa stay in Makhdoom colony in Bhatkal village
Younger sister and brother, Abdus Samad, 26, stay with them
While on the run in Nov 2011, he married 21-yearold Zaheda Mohammed Irshad in Okhla on the outskirts of Delhi
Route to Terrorism
Moved to Pune in late teens Stayed with close friend and Unani practitioner-turned-Islamist Riyaz Shahbandri (Riyaz Bhatkal) Shahbandri teamed up with Abdul Subhan Qureshi and Sadiq Israr Sheikh Yasin became overall in-charge of group By 2004, the group wanted its own identity, separate from Pakistan’s terror groups. Port town Bhatkal became centre of IM ops Riyaz’s brother Iqbal Shahbandri (Iqbal Bhatkal) and Bhatkal-based cleric Shabbir Gangoli held ideological classes
Emails claiming responsibility for attacks sent from IM ID
Yasin stayed below security radar: limited mobile phone use, no email, known to move location every few weeks, spoke to chosen few
Single-minded about recruiting newbies to terror network
Moved to Pune in late teens Stayed with close friend and Unani practitioner-turned-Islamist Riyaz Shahbandri (Riyaz Bhatkal) Shahbandri teamed up with Abdul Subhan Qureshi and Sadiq Israr Sheikh Yasin became overall in-charge of group By 2004, the group wanted its own identity, separate from Pakistan’s terror groups. Port town Bhatkal became centre of IM ops Riyaz’s brother Iqbal Shahbandri (Iqbal Bhatkal) and Bhatkal-based cleric Shabbir Gangoli held ideological classes
Emails claiming responsibility for attacks sent from IM ID
Yasin stayed below security radar: limited mobile phone use, no email, known to move location every few weeks, spoke to chosen few
Single-minded about recruiting newbies to terror network
Terror Resume Yasin Bhatkal is an accused or linked to the following blast cases:
OCT 29, 2005 | Paharganj, Sarojini Nagar, Gopal Nagar in Delhi | KILLED: 62
MARCH 7, 2006 | Sankat Mochan temple, Kashi Viswanath temple in Varanasi (unexploded) |
KILLED: 28
JULY 11, 2006 | Serial blasts on Mumbai’s local trains | KILLED: 187
NOV 24, 2006 | Faizabad, Lucknow and Varanasi courts
MAY 25, 2007 | Gorakhpur market
AUG 25, 2007 | Lumbini Park and Gokul Chat in Hyderabad | KILLED: 42
MAY 23, 2008 | Jaipur | KILLED: 80
JULY 24, 2008 | Bangalore | KILLED: 2
JULY 25, 2008 | Ahmedabad serial explosions |
KILLED: 56
JULY 26, 2008 | Surat (bombs defused)
SEPT 13, 2008 | Delhi serial blasts | KILLED: 30
FEB 13, 2010 | Pune German Bakery bomb blast | KILLED: 17
APRIL 17, 2010 | 3 blasts at Bangalore’s Chinnaswamy stadium
JULY 13, 2011 | Opera House, Zaveri Bazar and Dadar in Mumbai |
KILLED: 27
FEB 21, 2013: Twin blasts in Dilsukhnagar in Hyderabad | KILLED: 17
Yasin’s hand is suspected behind 548 deaths
Role in Blasts In
most blasts, he is believed to be the bomb planter In Mumbai’s triple
blasts, he arranged finance, explosives, made the bomb and executed the
operation. He did not plant the bomb, say police
Boost for Prosecution Yasin
is supposed to be the brain of IM in India. His arrest can help unearth
the larger conspiracy, gather first-hand information on the IM-LeT
connection, the channel for receiving money, the recruitment procedure,
and the safe houses of IM
Price On His Head In Jan 2013, Maharashtra ATS announced a reward of 10 lakh for info on him
The Indian Mujahideen IM started as a loose collaboration of jihadi elements drawn from the Students Islamic Movement of India Initially financed by Bihar ganglord Amir Raza Khan through organized crime IM is the Indian proxy of Pakistan-based Lashkar-e-Taiba, its core group of young men trained in Lashkar camps Unleashed terror in urban centres with well over 40 bomb attacks Over 70 of operatives arrested, not top leaders. Yasin Bhatkal is the first leader in the net IM backed by Pak’s ISI to project to the world that Islamic terrorism in India is indigenous
IM’s Top Terrorists Yet to be Arrested The Bhatkal Brothers | Operational commander Riyaz Shahbandri & top ideologue Iqbal Shahbandri fled to safe haven Karachi
The Liaison Man | Abdul Subhan Qureshi
Ganglord financer | Bihar’s Amir Raza Khan
From Azamgarh | Mirza Shadab Beg, Shahnawaz Alam & Md ‘Bada’ Sajid;
From UP | Ariz Khan, co-conspirator in Hyd bombings with Asadullah (arrested with Yasin)
From Maharashtra | Zulfikar Fayyaz ‘Kagazi’ and Rahil Sheikh
Kolkata
cops arrested Yasin Bhatkal in a theft case in 2009 and clicked this
photograph. He managed to convince them that he was the son of a North
Kolkata businessman and walked free
Scene after the 2011 Zaveri Bazar blast
Yasin suspected in 2006 train blasts in Mumbai
The Times of India, August 30, 2013
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