Overview
- The Uttar Pradesh Anti-Terrorism Squad arrested 19-year-old Maqsood Ali in Coimbatore on September 14 and brought him to Lucknow on transit remand after he was identified during questioning of Mohammad Nabeel, who was detained on September 12.
- ATS statements allege Ali was part of WhatsApp groups where AQIS-linked literature and bomb-making videos were shared and that some group members used Pakistani phone numbers.
- Officials say Ali developed a secure messaging application called “CAPTAIN M NETWORK” that investigators allege connected him, Nabeel and others for coordination.
- The agency reports Ali learned Python and Java from online sources and tried to build hacking tools while allegedly contacting Pakistan-based handlers, and investigators are probing his claimed cyber capabilities.
- A case has been registered under Sections 152 and 61(2) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita and Sections 18 and 38 of the UAPA, and investigators from UP and Tamil Nadu are pursuing digital forensics and cross-jurisdiction inquiries as the allegations await judicial verification.