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Islamic State (IS)-inspired module: Arrested Kurla teen's father says his son is framed

MUMBAI: In a cramped rented home in Kurla's Abdulla Compound, a father sits with his head in his hands, struggling to make sense of how his 18-year-old son's life unravelled in a matter of days. Mohammad Hamad Jalaluddin Mehmood Ali Siddique, barely out of school and having just turned 18, is now in the custody of the Delhi Special Cell, arrested with the help of the Maharashtra Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS) over alleged links to an Islamic State (IS)-inspired module that investigators claim was planning attacks using improvised explosive devices. For his father, Hamad Siddique, who works in the real-estate, the allegations feel unreal and unbearably heavy. "My son is innocent. He was in Higher Secondary Board (XIIth) and just completed 18 years recently. For the last few days he was going out and talking to people, but we had no idea about what he was doing," Siddique said, his voice wavering. The family says the teenager had only recently begun stepping out more frequently, often spending hours on phone calls. In hindsight, his father says, those were the moments he wishes he had questioned his son more closely. But he was just being a teenager, curious and young. "My son was studying HSC, he turned eighteen four months ago. He is innocent, since the last few days he used to go out of the house and talk to people on the phone for two to three hours. If I could have realised the same I could have slapped him here only," he said. Investigators, however, claim Siddique was part of a "highly radicalised" module inspired by ISIS, with plans to carry out attacks in Delhi and other locations. According to officials, the group was allegedly experimenting with assembling improvised explosive devices, including using toy-based mechanisms. On Friday, joint teams of the Maharashtra ATS, Delhi Special Cell and central agencies conducted raids in Kurla and adjoining areas, arresting Siddique along with Mohsib Ahmed Iftikhar Ahmed alias Kamal alias Sonu, 33, an auto electric mechanic from Khadavali in Thane district. Police said they have also issued a notice to Yasir Muslim Khan, 27, who runs a finance company in Thane, asking him to appear before the Delhi Special Cell. Another accused, Bada Imran, was arrested from Odisha and is suspected to be the handler of the group. Investigators claim the accused in Maharashtra were acting on his instructions. Officials said they recovered a toy train, electronic components such as wires and circuits, and other materials suspected to have been used to assemble an improvised explosive device (IED). "The auto mechanic was trying to fabricate an IED using the toy train as a delivery mechanism," an ATS officer said. Agencies have also seized electronic devices, chat records and online content allegedly linked to extremist propaganda. "They were using Telegram and even Signal and we suspect they were in touch with several people through them," said a police officer. The arrests come amid a broader crackdown on suspected terror modules across India, where agencies have flagged attempts to radicalise youth through encrypted messaging platforms, online videos and gaming networks. Intelligence inputs in recent months have pointed to handlers operating from abroad, including Pakistan, Afghanistan, Syria and Bangladesh, attempting to recruit and indoctrinate young Indians. But inside Siddique's home, these claims feel distant, overshadowed by illness, poverty and disbelief. "We stay in a rented house, I don't have money to even visit my son in Delhi, my wife has cancer. He is being trapped and cheated by someone. I was not home the day the ATS came home," Siddique said, adding that the police have not found anything incriminating at their residence. Trying to reconcile the image of his son with the allegations, he clings to small, ordinary details. "He used to play PUBG and Free Fire on his phone. We suspect somebody got in touch with him on that platform and has lured him with something," he said. Then, almost as if searching for proof in his own memory, he adds quietly, "He does not understand anything. He is a little kid, how can he beat anyone?" For now, the family says it will place its faith in the legal process. "However, we believe in the courts and they will give justice to us," Siddique said.

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