After a lull of four years following the liquidation of the chief of Al Qaeda in Indian Subcontinent (AQIS), Sambhal-resident Maulana Asim Umar in 2019 in Afghanistan, the terror outfit has sought to revive its insidious activities in India.
The outfit, through a propaganda piece in its official magazine Al Shabab Media, sought to gain traction within the gullible section of Muslims by claiming atrocities against the community during the recent celebration of Ram Navami across the country.
Through the article, the outfit has cited the recent attacks on Masjid Al Aqsa in Israel and those in India from Bihar to Rajasthan carried out during the period of Ramzan.
The outfit blamed the right wing outfits and the Hindu community for carrying out the “attacks” on mosques and madaris (Islamic seminaries).
“The hearts of all Muslims are in great anguish and agony over the attacks on the Al Aqsa Masjid Bait al Maqdis (Jerusalem), and similarly over the violation of the sanctity of the madaris and masajid (mosques) from Bihar to Rajasthan…..Sabilillah and Mahmoud of Ghazni shattered and destroyed the idol of Somnath and turned India into a centre of Islam after 17 Jihadi expeditions extended over a period of years,” claimed the article in its bid to gain traction among gullible Muslims by exploiting the communal faultlines.
The article further sought to draw similarity between the Jews and Hindus and highlighted that ‘role’ of the US in supporting Israel. The outfit further sought to eulogise outlandish concepts of jihadist violence. Counter-terrorism experts and analysts said the outfit is seeking to revive its activities in the country with the twin agenda of getting radicals in its fold and also to counter the activities of the Islamic State, which is a competitor of Al Qaeda globally. They said the agencies should enhance the surveillance on the possible activities of the outfit.
Counter-terrorism expert Rituraj Mate said, “Till Maulana Asim Umar was alive, the AQIS’ focus was Uttar Pradesh, Delhi, Assam and West Bengal. But the latest article suggests that the outfit now seeks to expand its footprint in other Hindi-speaking states like Bihar and Rajasthan.”
The timing of the letter suggests that the beheading incident of Rajasthan could have motivated the AQIS to revive itself and gain toehold in Rajasthan. There have been a number of recent incidents in Rajasthan like the railway blast and recovery of 1,000 gelatin sticks. Earlier, a Dholpur-based company, Rajasthan Explosives, was involved in supplying explosives to ISIS, Dr Mate added.