Luit Zaman’s parents, Mehboob and Lutfa. (Express photo by Abhishek Saha) Luit Zaman’s parents, Mehboob and Lutfa. (Express photo by Abhishek Saha)

On October 30, Mukaddir Islam, a 21-year-old electric-rickshaw driver in Assam’s Goalpara district, filled up an online application form for job in the Indian Army in the JCO/OR category. Since then, his father Zabiul Islam says, Mukaddir was jogging and running regularly to pass the fitness requirement in the selection process.

Almost a month later, on November 24, Mukaddir, his cousin Luit Zaman (24), and Ranjeet Ali (24) were arrested in a joint operation by the Special Cell of the Delhi and Assam Police from a lodge in Goalpara town.

In a statement, Delhi Police’s Special Cell described the three as terrorists and accused them of running an “ISIS-inspired module” in Assam. They are accused of planning to carry a “complete IED” to a local Hindu religious congregation with heavy footfall, the Raas Mela, and to explode the IED.

According to Delhi Police, “a trap was laid” near the lodge to nab the three, and that the accused have confessed during “initial interrogation” that they had similar plans to carry out attacks in Delhi and had planned the Assam blasts as a “test run”.

However, their parents and relatives have denied the accusations and alleged that their sons were “being framed”.

Zabiul told The Indian Express, “How can someone who wanted to join the Army and serve his country be connected to ISIS? My son has never been even remotely associated with any extremist organisation and this allegation against him is fabricated.”

Luit worked at an Aadhaar enrolment centre at a bank in Goalpara town. His mother Lutfa Begum said the cousins left their house on Saturday afternoon and never returned. She said, “On Sunday evening, police came to raid our house. They asked me if there were knives or machetes in the house. They said there were photos on Luit’s mobile. I handed them two knives and household machetes which we use to cut vegetables or the bushes which grow surrounding our house. How can they claim those knives as evidence that Luit is related to terrorist organisations?”

The Delhi Police, however, has said that in the recovery items, there were “two baton swords”. Describing Luit in a tweet, Delhi Police said he “had gained local notoriety for a failed love affair” and then “turned extremist inspired by online content”.

Begum told The Indian Express she has no idea as to what online content Luit was browsing, but says he was in a consensual relationship with a Hindu woman, but in September a police complaint of kidnapping was filed against her son. “The only charge against him is this woman — related case — there has been no complaints or allegations against him ever,” she said.

Meanwhile, Ranjeet Ali’s brother Rafiqul Islam said, “Ranjeet sells fish at the local market. He also occasionally works as an electrician. In his room, there are often parts of meter-boards, wires and batteries. During the police raid, I think they took a meter-board and now, they are using parts from it as evidence against my brother. We have never before received any complaint against my brother.”

When asked for a comment on the family’s allegations of the three being framed, Goalpara SP Sushanta Biswa Sarma said, “We will investigate the case and only then the truth will be found. They are in remand for 12 days.”

Delhi Police has said they recovered a “complete IED”, “1 kg of explosive powder” and IED components such as pipes, nails, ball bearings from the three accused. Police has not specified the explosive material.

DCP (Special Cell) Pramod Singh Kushwah said that “the explosives have been sent to the forensic science laboratory and the exact content will be known then”.

A police officer said, “Our source-based information said that it’s the same contents used to make crackers.”

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