The Special Cell of Delhi Police on Saturday busted a major terror module allegedly linked to the Dawood Ibrahim network and Pakistan’s Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI), arresting nine individuals who were reportedly plotting attacks on critical installations, security personnel and religious places in the national capital, sources said. Police have also recovered a substantial cache of arms, hand grenades and explosive materials from the possession of the accused. According to sources, the module had been carefully developed over a long period by Pakistan’s intelligence establishment with the specific objective of carrying out terror attacks in Delhi.
Investigators probe Pakistan links and planned targets
Sources said the arrested individuals include persons of Nepali origin who were allegedly part of the network. Preliminary investigations have indicated suspected operational links between the accused and Pakistan-backed handlers, as well as operatives associated with the Mumbai underworld network.
The accused were allegedly tasked with targeting high-value critical installations, security personnel and prominent religious places in Delhi. Officials said the recovery of firearms, sophisticated explosive materials and multiple hand grenades helped neutralise what they described as an immediate threat to the capital’s security.
Probe expands to funding and support networks
The Delhi Police Special Cell has launched a detailed investigation into the module’s funding channels, recruitment patterns and logistical support networks. Investigators are also examining the role of handlers and local facilitators allegedly involved in the terror conspiracy.
Officials are working to establish the full extent of the network and identify any additional operatives who may have been connected to the module’s activities.
Crackdown comes a month after D-Company breakthrough
The development comes exactly a month after Indian law enforcement agencies secured a major breakthrough against the D-Company network with the return of Mohammad Salim Dola, a senior associate of fugitive underworld don Dawood Ibrahim, from Turkey.
Dola, who had been absconding since 2020, was detained from a residence in Istanbul’s Beylikduzu district during a targeted operation by the Narcotics Crimes Division of the Istanbul Police Department and was subsequently processed for deportation.
Dola’s arrest seen as key to wider investigations
After arriving at Delhi Technical Airport, Dola was produced before a Delhi court, which granted a two-day transit remand to the Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) to take him to Mumbai in connection with a 2023 NCB Mumbai case involving an Interpol Red Notice under the NDPS Act.
The crackdown is linked to ongoing investigations in India, where associates arrested in Mumbai’s Kurla area allegedly confessed to receiving instructions from Dola. Their interrogation led to the seizure of more than 126 kilograms of mephedrone and Rs 25.22 lakh.
Officials consider Dola a key figure in managing Dawood Ibrahim’s international drug network. They believe his custody could provide crucial information on how the D-Company moves contraband through West Asia and Europe, the hawala channels used to route drug proceeds into organised crime, and the sleeper cells and distributors operating in Mumbai and neighbouring states.
(with inputs from ANI)
Khalid Qasid is a media enthusiast with a strong interest in documentary filmmaking. He holds a Master’s degree in Convergent Journalism from AJK MCRC. He has also written extensively on esports at Sportsdunia. Currently, he covers world and general news at NewsX Digital.
