Banned in the nick of time: Jamaat-e-Islami was spiralling out of control

The Centre has banned the Jamaat-e-Islami under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act for alleged anti-national activities.

The Jamaat-e-Islami had come under the radar in Jammu and Kashmir and nearly 150 of its members, including its president and spokesperson were taken into police custody recently in a major crackdown. This is the first major crackdown on the Jamaat, which has been termed as the parent political party of the Hizbul Mujahideen. 

The crackdown on the outfit is a significant one and it may be recalled that the National Investigation Agency had recently learnt that there was a major plot being hatched to carry out a wave of terror attacks in India ahead of the Lok Sabha elections. The plot was unearthed after the NIA busted an Islamic State inspired module that went by the name Harkat-ul-Harb e Islam. The NIA learnt that two calls made by the alleged kingpin of the module were to Pakistan and Bangladesh. The NIA said that the module was being headed by Mufti Suhail, a resident of Amroha in Uttar Pradesh.

During the course of the investigation the NIA learnt that Suhail was being handled by a Pakistani. The chat transcripts with the agent, Abu Malik unearthed clearly suggested that the instructions were coming from across the border.  However a call that was made by Suhail in October 2018 to a member of the Jamaat-e-Islami Bangladesh has made the case even more curious. The call was made in October from the United Kingdom in which Suhail is told to start preparing to launch operations. He was told that the operations would be launched and from January onwards there would be a series of attacks running up to the elections.  The revelation comes in the wake of various reports suggesting that the ISI was trying to meddle in the recently concluded Bangladesh elections. Both the ISI and the Jamaat have opposed India's support to the Awami League. The operative who called Suhail tries to indicate that India's support to the Awami League must be avenged and hence a series of attacks need to be launched. India faces a very crucial election this year. The intelligence agencies are reporting extensive activity by ISI moles and agents to disrupt the polls and create havoc ahead of the polls.

The recently busted module by the NIA was one part of that operation, officials tell OneIndia. However Pakistan wants the deniability factor and hence uses the name of the Islamic State to launch new operations in India. Intelligence agencies in India have always maintained that the operations of the so called ISIS inspired modules in India are not being handled from Iraq or Syria. In the busting of every module, we have come across clear instances of the events being staged by Pakistan. The ISIS problem in India have been two-fold. One is the setting up of modules, while the other is regarding recruitments for the mainland. Be it modules in Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Delhi or Uttar Pradesh, they have all been staged by Pakistan. In each case, the Pakistan link has cropped up and the handler has always been traced to that country.