A preliminary probe into the Udaipur beheading case has revealed that the two prime accused — Riyaz Akhtari and Ghouse Mohammad — were in communication with 18 Pakistani mobile numbers and as many as 300 suspected “radicals” across 25 States in India.
Out of these 300 people with whom the two prime suspects were in touch, nearly 250 are from Maharashtra alone and the remaining are from Gujarat, Kerala, West Bengal and Bihar, sources said.
The agencies are scanning the bank accounts of these 300 suspects for any dubious transactions. Also, initial findings suggest the 300 suspects could be part of the sleeper cells of Pakistani terrorist group Dawat-e-Islami and awaiting instructions for inimical actions, they said.
Some of these 300 suspects were in touch with the Pakistani mobile phone numbers with which the two prime accused in the Udaipur beheading case were also communicating.
These initial findings have also been corroborated with the analysis of the call detail records of the seven arrested accused in the Udaipur case.
Sources said the two prime accused in the beheading case were curious to know about the quantum of punishment they would face and if death penalty was inevitable.