Terror Plot Foiled in Hyderabad; Two ISIS-Linked Suspects Arrested

A major terror attack was averted in Hyderabad after two ISIS-linked suspects were arrested in a joint operation by the Andhra Pradesh and Telangana police. The accused, Siraj-ur-Rehman (29) from Vizianagaram and Syed Sameer (28) from Hyderabad’s Bhoiguda area, were allegedly planning bomb blasts in the region.

Following a tip-off, police raided Siraj’s residence in Vizianagaram early Sunday, seizing explosive materials including ammonia, sulphur, and aluminium powder. Based on his confession, Telangana police detained Sameer in Hyderabad and brought him to Vizianagaram later that day with a prisoner transit warrant.

Both were presented before a local court, which remanded them to 14 days of judicial custody. The suspects have been charged under various sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) for plotting terrorist activities and disturbing public order.

Preliminary investigations revealed that Siraj, an engineering graduate, had moved to Hyderabad under the guise of preparing for civil service exams. During this period, he held multiple meetings with Sameer, who worked at a lift company. The duo formed a terror group named Al Hind Ittehadul Muslimeen (AHIM), with Siraj as the leader and Sameer as his second-in-command.

Authorities discovered that they were receiving instructions from an unidentified Saudi Arabia-based handler, primarily through Instagram. They had sourced chemicals like potassium chlorate and sulphur online and studied bomb-making techniques using digital platforms.

The two were allegedly preparing to conduct test blasts in Vizianagaram on May 21 or 22. However, swift police action thwarted their plans.

This foiled plot follows closely after the Pahalgam terror attack in Jammu & Kashmir, where 26 people were killed. That attack led to India’s Operation Sindoor, a retaliatory strike on terror camps in Pakistan and Pakistan-Occupied Kashmir.