The special court today extended till June 10 the judicial custody of alleged operatives of Islamic State Mufti Abdus Sami Qasmi and Azhar Khan after the NIA said they may hamper the ongoing probe if freed.
According to the sources, the special NIA court extended the jail term of the accused on NIA's application which also claimed that the case was scattered in different parts of the country and being carried out on day to day basis.
"The investigation pertaining to this case is scattered in different parts of the country and being carried out on day to day basis. The accused persons are in nexus with the banned terrorist organisation and may hamper the ongoing probe.
"The electronic devices like mobile phones, laptops, SIM cards etc., seized from the possession of the accused persons, have been sent for forensic analysis and the report is still awaited," the NIA said during in-camera proceedings.
It further claimed that during custodial interrogation, the accused persons had revealed the names and codes of their associates inside and outside India and investigation was being carried out to identify them.
According to the prosecution, Qasmi, a Delhi-based Islamic scholar, known for his fiery speeches, was arrested from Uttar Pradesh's Hardoi District in February this year.
The NIA has claimed that he had been "delivering provocative and inflammatory speeches and was instigating youths for anti-national activities".
The other suspect Azhar was arrested on February 1 by the NIA.
According to ATS, they were in touch with some unknown
handlers of ISIS based in Iraq and Syria. They had plan to escape to Iraq or Syria after carrying out attacks here.
They were attracted to ISIS two years back and started taking interest in its activities. They were in contact with the main ISIS persons as well as unknown handlers to get guidance.
Gun powder, local made bombs with battery and masks to hide their identity were recovered from during raids at their place.
Police also seized computers in which objectionable and prohibited content was found.
