Kalyan man with suspected ISIS links denied bail

A court here on Thursday rejected the bail plea of Kalyan-resident Areeb Majeed, arrested for allegedly travelling to Syria to join terrorist organisation ISIS.

Majeed was arrested under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA) in 2014 upon his return from Syria.

He had filed a bail plea before special judge for UAPA cases, R R Bhosale, in July. But bail was denied to him for a third time.

Earlier, the special court as well as the Bombay High Court had denied him bail.

In the latest plea, Majid contended that the National Investigation Agency had no jurisdiction to either register an FIR or investigate the case against him in 2014.

The alleged offence was committed in Iraq and Syria, outside Indian jurisdiction, the bail plea said.

The NIA got the power to investigate offences outside the country only this year following an amendment to the NIA Act, the application said.

There was no evidence to show that he was either involved in terror acts or in waging war against a friendly nation, Majeed contended.

Majeed, who hails from Kalyan in neighbouring Thane district, returned to Mumbai from Turkey on November 28, 2014, following which he was arrested under the UAPA and section 125 of the IPC (waging war against a country which has friendly ties with India).

According to the investigating agencies, Majeed and three other engineering students from Kalyan flew to Baghdad in 2014, as part of a group of 22 pilgrims visiting Iraq.

Once they reached there, Majeed and the three other joined the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS), the agencies claimed.