Was Suhail, the terror suspect arrested in Karnataka’s Davanagere, planning to target the Ram Mandir in Ayodhya?
Police sources say they are investigating the angle after recovering crucial evidence from
his mobile phone. Suhail, who was allegedly living in Davanagere as a painter, is suspected to have been in touch with people in Pakistan.
Investigators say they found a Pakistani phone number saved as “Ranaji” and are probing whether it belonged to his handler. They have also recovered audio files allegedly discussing a terror attack, along with photographs showing Suhail posing with weapons.
Police say Suhail’s WhatsApp and Instagram activity is also under the scanner. They are now investigating whether he was trying to recruit and radicalise youngsters, while also trying to uncover the full extent of the alleged terror network.
According to the police FIR: “When we checked the phone, the contact was saved as ‘Suhel Rana Pradhan’. There are different applications on the said mobile phone. In the locked chats on the WhatsApp application, there is a number with the Pakistan country code +92 318 234 5739, and the said number is saved under the name ‘Rana Ji’. There are audio conversations with this person in a mixture of Hindi and Urdu, which were listened to by station staff H.C. 312 Dadapir and translated into Kannada. One of the audio clips allegedly says, ‘I want to blow up the Ram temple with a bomb.’ Other audio clips were found in groups/channels subscribed to as 1) Memon & Jutt 333, 2) Rana Bhai Group 333, and 3) VIP Channels, in which several photographs of him holding a weapon and images resembling terrorists were found.
“Provocative content in Hindi and Urdu, allegedly detrimental to the sovereignty, unity, integrity and national security of India, and capable of disturbing peace and order and inciting communal riots, was found. It was also found that there was a conspiracy to commit terrorist acts.”
Suhail was arrested in a joint operation by Karnataka Police and Central Intelligence officials. Police said the arrest came after leads emerged during the questioning of two other terror suspects recently arrested in Tumakuru and Davanagere.
Karnataka home minister Priyank Kharge confirmed the arrest and said the accused was found to be in contact with people across the border.
“Preliminary investigation suggests he was in contact with people across the border. We are trying to establish who he was communicating with and the purpose behind those interactions. Further investigation will reveal the details,” Kharge told reporters.
