Delhi Court Sentences Five Persons For Carrying Out Anti-National Activities In India, Links With ISIS Affiliate

A Delhi Court on Monday granted different jail terms to five individuals, including a Kashmiri couple, convicted for carrying out anti-national activities in India and for their affiliation with Islamic State Khorasan Province (ISKP), a part of banned terror organization ISIS.

Additional Sessions Judge Chander Jit Singh of Patiala House Courts sentenced the prime accused, Jahanzaib Sami, a software engineer by profession, to 20 years of imprisonment for the offences under Section 17 and 18 of UAPA.

He was also sentenced to different terms under Section 124A and 120B of Indian Penal Code, 1860, and Section 13, 38 and 39 of UAPA.

Sami had pleaded guilty of the offences. The court observed that he had prepared the magazine "Swat Al Hind, Voice of Hind" and was deeply involved to recruit gullible young muslims for radicalization by brain-washing them.

“Convict Jahanzaib Sami was also involved in procuring arms, remote of IED and suicide jackets. Convict was also involved in raising funds through Bitcoin which is a veiled method of raising funds online…therefore, he can be said to be a person of reasonable intelligence who cannot take shelter under the arguments of not understanding the impact of his (mis) deeds,” the court said.

His wife, Hina Bashir Beg, was sentenced to 8 years of imprisonment for the offences under Section 38(2) and 39(2) of UAPA.

The court observed that Beg, who was following the ideology of ISIS, was using social media by employing her skills in computer and management and was fully active with her husband.

Another convict Abdulla Basit was sentenced to the period already undergone by him for the offences under Sections 38 and 39 of UAPA and ordered that he be released from custody, if not required in any other case. Basit had also accepted his guilt.

Convict Sadiya Anwar Shaikh Sadiya, a journalism student at the time of her arrest, was sentenced to 7 years, observing that she was highly influenced by the ideology of ISIS.

Nabeel Siddick Khatri was sentenced to 15 years in jail, observing that he raised funds to further the activities of ISIS in India. He also pleaded guilty to the offences.

“For any organization to survive, continue and act to achieve its objectives, availability and movement of funds is one of the most important factors. In absence of funds, despite most dedicated cadre, an organization cannot inch forward towards. Therefore, to say that funds are life-line of an organization would not be an exaggeration,” the court said.

“For all the sentences,punishment awarded in the form of imprisonment for various offences shall run concurrently and the imprisonment awarded is simple imprisonment,” the court said.

The NIA alleged that Sami was raising, receiving and providing funds through crypto currency to promote the ideology of the ISIS.

The NIA further said that the accused persons instigated Muslims by coining seditious slogans and making graffiti at public places and highlighting the same on social and international media”

As per NIA, the accused were also provoking some gullible youth to participate in anti-CAA protests actively. 

It was also alleged that in case the protests failed to provoke the Muslims, the accused persons were planning for arsoning of Government buildings and public property so that riots could happen and they could exploit the sentiments of Muslims.