Missing JNU student Najeeb searched for information on Islamic State

In a fresh twist to the mysterious case of the missing JNU student Najeeb Ahmed, newspaper reports today claimed that the missing research scholar had been looking up information on Islamic State (IS) ideology, executions and its network.

A Times of India report today said that the Delhi Police had received a report from Google and Youtube on Najeeb’s internet searches, which included things like ways to join IS. Also, most of the videos he watched on YouTube were related to the Islamic State, the report claimed.

Hours later, the Delhi Police came forward to deny the media reports, categorically saying it had not received any such report from Google or anywhere lese. Delhi Police further refuted submitting any such report to the Delhi High Court.

While the report still stands, the Delhi Police's defence is being taken with a pinch of salt. Notably, the court has on more than one occasion, come down hard on the Delhi Police for its slow pace of investigation. Najeeb has been missing since the intervening night of October 14-15 last year.

According to the Times of India report, Delhi Police had claimed that Najeeb was watching a video on the speech of an IS leader on October 14, just before he had a fight with ABVP members when they knocked on his door. He then went missing the next morning before being caught on CCTV boarding an autorickshaw.

The report further claimed that cops are also taking the help of counter-intelligence agency to explore the possibility of Najeeb getting radicalised and being lured away via Nepal. Posters of Najeeb’s photograph have been put up in several areas of Nepal that are close to UP.

Police investigations following Najeeb's disappearance revealed that he was allegedly on medication for obsessive compulsive disorder from 2012. He was prescribed Flunil (20mg) and Zolfresh (5mg) on August 27. The first is used to treat depression and OCD while the latter is used to induce sleep.

On September 9, doctors had prescribed him Lonazep – a medication used to treat fits, panic attacks and agoraphobia (fear of public places).

Another major twist came in mid-January when the family received a ransom call of Rs 20 lakh. The cops arrested the caller. It turned out that he was only trying to make some money. When Najeeb’s email was accessed last week, they landed up at his house, tracking the IP address, and found his maternal uncle was using his account.

The police have been visiting places that Najeeb had looked up online. One was Manipur but sleuths found that he had a classmate from there.

The police have also been probing if Najeeb took shelter at some shrine as his mother said he was religious since childhood. Cops have visited over 150 mosques and madrasas in Agra, Badaun and other places in western UP, and Ajmer.

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