LUCKNOW: The Uttar Pradesh Anti-Terrorist Squad (ATS) arrested four people, including a minor, allegedly linked to the banned Shahzad Bhatti Network (SBN) for plotting to target a police or Army personnel in Lucknow on the instructions of a Pakistan-based handler identified as Rana Bhai.The arrests were made in Lucknow on October 30.The accused have been identified as Gagandeep Singh, 26, Rajat Kumar, 19, and Krish, 21, all residents of Punjab. A pistol and 20 cartridges were recovered from their possession.Additional DG, Law and Order, Amitabh Yash said intelligence inputs suggested that some youths from Punjab associated with the banned network were planning an attack on a police or military establishment in India.Further investigation allegedly revealed that Gagandeep Singh and his associates were in contact with Rana Bhai, an active member of the network, who had instructed them to carry out an attack in Lucknow.“During interrogation, the accused told investigators that they had been assigned the task of killing an Army or police personnel and recording the attack on video to send it to their Pakistani handler. They left Amritsar on October 27, travelled through Delhi and reached Lucknow around midnight on October 29. They allegedly communicated with Rana Bhai through Instagram and WhatsApp,” said Yash.The ATS said the handler had transferred Rs 2,585 to them for travel expenses and subsequently sent another Rs 2,500 in two instalments for their stay and other expenses.They had allegedly been promised Rs 3 lakh after executing the targeted killing.According to investigators, Rana Bhai had told them that weapons and ammunition had been sent from Pakistan and that a local associate in Lucknow would hand them over.The accused allegedly received the pistol and cartridges from one of the handler’s associates after reaching the city.The handler had also instructed them to travel to Nepal after carrying out the attack to evade arrest and spend time there, the ATS said.Investigators further found that the accused had allegedly recorded a video of Lucknow railway station and sent it to the Pakistani handler.A preliminary examination of their mobile phones revealed suspicious conversations, videos and chats through WhatsApp accounts activated using virtual numbers and linked to foreign numbers.The ATS also claimed to have found digital material indicating that the accused had conducted reconnaissance of sensitive establishments, collected their locations and shared the information with their Pakistani handler.An FIR has been registered at the ATS police station in Lucknow under Sections 152 and 61(2) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, Sections 3/25 of the Arms Act and Sections 18 and 38 of the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act.“The accused will be produced before a court for further legal proceedings. The ATS is also planning to seek their police custody remand to investigate the financial trail, identify other associates and establish the extent of the alleged conspiracy,” said the ADG.
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