NIA files chargesheet against two LeT militants for conspiracy to wage war against India

BENGALURU: The National Investigative Agency (NIA) filed a supplementary chargesheet before a special court here on Monday against two militants of proscribed militant outfit Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) for their involvement in a conspiracy to commit subversive activities and wage a war against India.

The NIA in a statement said that arrested militants were also involved in the killing of key personalities of the Hindu community in the country.

The chargesheet was filed against two LeT militants — Dr Sabeel Ahmed of Bengaluru and Asadulla Khan of Hyderabad under sections of the India Penal Code (IPC) and the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA).

According to the country’s premier investigation agency, the case, initially registered in August 2012 in Bengaluru, pertains to a conspiracy hatched by members of proscribed militant organisations LeT and Harkat-ul-Jihad-e-Islami (HuJI) to “commit subversive activities and wage a war against the government of India”.

“They had procured illegal arms and ammunition for targeted killings of important personalities of the Hindu community in Karnataka’s Bengaluru and Hubli, Maharashtra’s Nanded and Telangana’s Hyderabad to disturb communal harmony and strike terror in the society,” the NIA said.

The investigative agency re-registered the case in November 2012 and filed chargesheets against 17 accused.

LeT members Ahmed and Khan were involved in a criminal conspiracy, along with other accused, in supporting and furthering the cause of the militant outfit in Saudi Arabia’s Dammam and Riyadh, the NIA said adding that they had actively participated in meetings, where militant activities like targeted killings of important personalities of the Hindu community in Bengaluru, Hubli in Karnataka and Nanded in Maharashtra were planned.

The special NIA court in Bengaluru convicted 13 accused in the case in September 2016 and sentenced them to five years of imprisonment for their involvement in offences under the UAPA, IPC, Arms Act and Official Secrets Act.

A trial is continuing against three accused who were named in an earlier chargesheet and further investigation against six absconding accused is underway. (AGENCY)