By Newzfirst Correspondent2/21/13

Bangalore – About 6 months after 15 youths were arrested from different locations in Karnataka on charges of a terror plot and alleged links with banned terror outfits, the National Investigation Agency (NIA) submitted a charge-sheet on Wednesday against 12 persons while dropping the charges of two others – journalist Muthi Ur Rehman Siddique and Yusuf Nalband.

On 29 August, 11 youths were picked up by CCB sleuths from Bangalore and Hubli for alleged links with banned terror outfits. Four more were subsequently arrested from different locations in Karnataka and Hyderabad.

The case of these 15 accused was registered at Basaveshwara Nagar police station, with the CCB Special Enquiries (SE) squad of Bangalore being in-charge of the investigation.

The NIA later took over the investigation of the case (384/2012) and continued inquiry against the accused persons after re-registering the case as RC 04/12/ NIA/Hyd.

According to the NIA, 25 persons are accused in the above case. Of the 25 accused, 15 have been arrested so far while 10 more are absconding.

Out of the 15 persons who were arrested, the NIA has filed charges against 11. The charges against two persons – journalist Muthi Ur Rehman Siddique and Yusuf Nalband – have been dropped while the NIA has sought more time to investigate two others, namely Aejaz Ahmed Mirza and Syed Tanzeem. One more person who is included in the charge-sheet, but remains absconding, is Zakir @ Ustad.

The present charge sheet has been submitted against 12 of the 25 accused persons, namely Shoaib Ahmed Mirza @ Chotu, Abdul  Hakeem  Jamadar, Riyaz Ahmed Byahatti , Mohammad Akram @ Khaled, Ubedullah Bahadur @ Imran, Wahid Hussain Kanakyanavar, Dr. Zafar Iqbal Sholapur, Mohammad Sadiq Lashkar, Mehboob Bagalkote,  Zakir @ Ustad,  Obaid-Ur-Rehman and Dr. Nayeem Siddique, charged under sections 120 B  read with (r/w) 153 A,  399 of Indian Penal Code (IPC),  section 18 r/w sections 10, 13, 17, and 38 of the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA) 1967 and section 3 r/w 25 of the Arms Act 1959.

“The investigation disclosed the conspiracy to commit terrorist activities in India by a Lashkar-e-Toiba (LeT) supported network of terrorists based abroad and their associates in India in the States of Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh and Maharashtra,” NIA said in a statement.

“Further Investigation of the Case is in progress against other accused who are absconding and suspected to be based in foreign countries as well as two arrested accused,” the statement further read.