Lucknow NIA court sentences three Al-Qaeda-linked terrorists to life imprisonment

LUCKNOW: A court in Lucknow on Monday sentenced three terrorists linked to the Al-Qaeda-affiliated terror module Ansar Ghazwat-ul-Hind (AGH) to life imprisonment for conspiring to carry out serial blasts in Uttar Pradesh and other parts of the country.

Special Judge (NIA/ATS) Jitendra Kumar Pandey convicted and sentenced Minhaj Ahmad alias Minhaj, Musiruddin alias Musir alias Raju, and Tauheed Ahmad Shah alias Sobu Shah in the case investigated by the National Investigation Agency (NIA).

The court held the accused guilty under various provisions of the Indian Penal Code, the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, the Explosive Substances Act, and the Arms Act.

According to the prosecution, the convicts were part of an Al-Qaeda in Indian Subcontinent (AQIS) module set up in Lucknow under the banner of Ansar Ghazwat-ul-Hind at the direction of Pakistan/Afghanistan border-based handler Umar Helmandi.

The probe found that the terror module had planned to execute bomb blasts and fidayeen-style attacks at government buildings, sensitive installations, monuments, and crowded public places in Uttar Pradesh, particularly in Lucknow, before August 15, 2021.