3 arrested in MP in "terror funding" case linked to Pakistan

The Madhya Pradesh Police has arrested three persons in connection with an alleged terror funding racket operated from Satna that had links with Pakistan, an official said on Thursday.

The arrested persons were in contact with Pakistani handlers with whom they use to share "strategic information" and details of bank accounts of some people, he said.

The racket was spread across several states in the country, the official said, adding the police have also detained two of their associates for interrogation.

The accused made several calls to foreign countries and executed a number of suspicious transactions using different bank accounts, Satna Superintendent of Police Riyaz Iqbal told PTI.

"Three persons - Balram Singh, Sunil Singh and Shubham Mishra - were arrested and two of their associates detained on Wednesday night in this connection," he said.

The official did not reveal the names of those detained.

All five have been handed over to the state's Anti- Terrorism Squad (ATS) for further probe, Iqbal said.

"The accused were making calls to foreign countries. They were also using various social networking sites and applications for communication.

"Besides, they had carried out several transactions using different bank accounts," he said.

The SP said the racket was spread across several states, including Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal and Bihar, and added that the ATS would further investigate the case.

Balram Singh and one of those detained were arrested by the ATS in February 2017 in connection with an espionage and terror funding racket, Iqbal said.

According to police sources, Balram Singh is currently out on bail in the 2017 case.

Meanwhile, in Bhopal, state police headquarters spokesman A P Singh said, "These three accused, who were working in an organised manner, have been booked and arrested under IPC section 123 (concealing with intent to facilitate design to wage war).

In February 2017, 15 people, including Balram Singh, were arrested by the ATS for their alleged links to an espionage racket being run from Pakistan to collect strategic information.

They were sharing details of bank accounts and ATMs with the same Pakistani handlers via phone numbers which were were also found to have been used during the previous investigation (of 2017 case), the spokesman said.

The accused had again established contact with these Pakistani handlers, he added.

Singh said, "These persons were transferring money, collected after duping people, on the directives of Pakistani agents. They were also receiving money through illegal bank accounts.

After the arrest of 15 people in 2017 on charges of espionage and terror funding, a senior officer had said the money was frequently deposited through 'hawala' transactions in the accounts of Balram Singh and other accused with fictitious names by overseas handlers.

The handlers used to talk to these accused using secretive communication techniques to hide identities. They had also set up an illegal telephone exchange, he had said.