Stand-off between ATS, suspected terrorists in Lucknow

The National Investigation Agency is investigating the claims and is yet to conclude the investigation.

The forces were deployed to the Haji colony located in Thakurganj after a tip-off was given to the UP police regarding the presence of a suspicious man.

Earlier on 8 March, 2017, the father of Saifullah, Sartaj refused to accept his son’s body saying “a traitor” is no son of theirs. “Many IS operatives were deported to India after months of tracking by these experts, who would then pass off this information to RAW”, said a central government officer who has worked closely with the Telangana police.

For 12 hours, commandos tried to capture him alive- they used chilli grenades smoke him out of the house, organised for his brother to talk him on the phone. There was only Saifullah. Police were trying to secure two of his associates, Azhar Khan and Ghous Md. They finally got into the house at close to 4 in the morning.

During the interrogation, the men revealed that they were part of a terror group consisting nine men, all from Lucknow and Kanpur, and had pledged their allegiance to ISIS.

Meanwhile, the UP Police have said more terrorists of the ISIS Khorasan module are at large, and are being searched for. “Rest of the legal formalities will subsequently take place”.

The Uttar Pradesh Anti-Terrorism Squad had originally claimed he was a member of a local Islamic State cell.

“We have no such evidence yet of any ISIS link”, Daljit said addressing a press conference here, adding that he was apparently influenced by surfing through ISIS websites. “But, he did not come out”.

Initial reports from Lucknow said there were two terrorists in the Thakurganj house. Since one line was working, there was no major disruption of traffic, it said. They also said Saiful had sent a photo of the bomb he had planted in the Bhopal-Ujjain Express to someone in Syria.

“We suspect that it could possibly be an explosive”.

They found one body on the blood-splattered floor.

The Lucknow op comes hours after a blast on a Bhopal-Ujjain train, in which eight people were injured.

The terror suspect, who was hiding in the rented house, was given time to surrender and was killed after cops retaliated.

Atif Muzaffar alias Al Qasim and Mohammad Danish alias Zafar (both from Kanpur) were arrested by MP police.

The ATS launched the operation to flush out the suspected terrorist following inputs that he may be linked to train blast this morning.

Imran and Faisal’s father has denied the accusations against his sons as ‘false’.