ISI-backed Shahzad Bhatti group destroyed before Independence Day, terror plot foiled: Centre

The Union Home Minister, Amit Shah, announced on Monday that the Pakistani-backed terror group, Shahzad Bhatti Network, had been dismantled before India's Independence Day. Shah claimed that over 200 members of the network had been apprehended through coordinated operations spanning 14 states. He highlighted that the Indian security forces had dismantled the group by launching simultaneous operations across multiple locations, demonstrating India's "zero-tolerance towards terrorism."

The arrested individuals were found in possession of improvised explosive devices, grenades with Pakistani markings, pistols, live cartridges, and surveillance equipment. The Ministry of Home Affairs reported that the terror syndicate was dismantled in a "major multi-state crackdown," with 253 people detained across 14 states. The group was accused of carrying out grenade, improvised explosive device, and petrol bomb attacks and targeted killings across India.

The network was also linked to espionage activities, as it allegedly paid locals to scout police, defense, and religious sites and install surveillance cameras. Two suspects, including a Pakistani national, were arrested near the India-Bangladesh border, and another individual was apprehended in Kolkata for his alleged connections to Pakistani terror suspects.