No link between ISI and Muzaffarnagar riot victims: Shinde

There were media reports that suspected LeT terrorists had approached riot victims to recruit men to their module

The Centre on Tuesday said there was no link between Pakistan's ISI and Muslim youth, who were victims of Muzaffarnagar riots, but agreed with Delhi Police's statement that two suspected LeT operatives had met two persons in the area.

"There is no evidence or intelligence inputs that suggested that the ISI had approached the riot victims," a senior Home Ministry official said. Minister of State for Home R P N Singh had also expressed similar view while replying a question in Parliament on December 11, 2013.

"According to information available by intelligence agency, there are no inputs suggesting any link between ISI, Pakistan and the Muslim youth belonging to the families of minority community affected in the recent communal riots in the district of Muzaffarnagar," he had informed Rajya Sabha.

The home ministry official, however, agreed with Delhi Police's statement that two suspected LeT operatives had met two people in Muzaffarnagar region but denied that the two residents of Muzaffarnagar were riot victims or had anything to do with the violence there.

"It is a fact that there are some ISI operatives in Western UP. But so far, we have no evidence or intelligence inputs that suggested that the ISI has approached the Muzaffarnagar riot victims," the official said.

There were media reports that suspected Lashkar-e-Taiba terrorists had approached Muzaffarnagar riot victims to recruit men to their module, creating a major controversy as it came three months after Congress leader Rahul Gandhi had claimed that ISI had approached victims of the riots.