The Hindu : Front Page : Most wanted LeT operative arrested

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Tuesday, Jan 19, 2010
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Most wanted LeT operative arrested

M. Srinivas

— PTI Photo

Amjad arrested in Hyderabad on Monday.

HYDERABAD: The Hyderabad police foiled the attempts of Lashkar-e-Toiba (LeT) to organise major ‘actions’ in south India, with the arrest of its south Indian chief Shaik Abdul Khaja alias Amjad at Afzalgunj bus stop here on Monday. The arrested man was allegedly involved in the twin blasts in Hyderabad in 2007, New Delhi, Uttar Pradesh, Jaipur and Ahmedabad.

Amjad (27), who also goes by the nom de guerres of Saif, Pappu and Abdullah, hails from Malakpet locality in the old city and is accused of having close links with other terror groups like the Harkat-ul-Jehad-al-Islami (HuJI) and Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM), Commissioner of Police B. Prasada Rao told a news conference.

Mr. Rao declined to elaborate on what Amjad was planning to do in south India pointing out that the police had to interrogate him and learn more about his plans. Asked whether the terror suspect was planning something on Republic Day, the city police chief asserted that the interrogators could not cull out any such information.

He said the arrested man was a close associate of Shaheed Bilal, another terrorist from Hyderabad, who was shot dead in Pakisatan in 2007. He was involved in several terror attacks in the country and had fled to Pakistan via Saudi Arabia on the pretext of performing Umrah in May 2005. The police are planning to take him on police remand for further questioning. Authorities had seized 348 US dollars, 313 Saudi Riyals, 225 UAE Dirhams and Pakistan rupees 28,640 and 348 Bangla takas.

Police suspect that Amjad and his associates had recced certain targets in the country. He was involved in an attempt to murder over a dispute of installing a Ganesh idol in 2003 in Hyderabad. He jumped bail and escaped to Saudi Arabia.

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