Who is Shahzad Bhatti? Pakistan-based terror group leader's network busted before Independence Day

Pakistan-based terror figure Shahzad Bhatti has been making headlines once more after the Indian Home Minister, Amit Shah, announced the arrest of over 200 individuals linked to his network just ahead of Independence Day. In a post on X, Shah claimed that the Modi government had dismantled the Bhatti-led network and prevented potential subversive attacks through these arrests.

According to the Ministry of Home Affairs, a total of 80 FIRs and more than 200 arrests were registered against the Shahzad Bhatti Network under various laws such as the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act, Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, Arms Act, NDPS Act, and Explosive Substances Act. The statement further revealed that evidence of the network's direct cross-border links was uncovered through recoveries like IEDs, grenades with markings from the Pakistan Ordnance Factory, pistols, live cartridges, and espionage CCTVs.

Shahzad Bhatti has been a significant figure in Indian security agencies' radar for over a year, as reported by HT earlier. Operating from Pakistan and the Gulf region, he is described as a former gangster who has turned into a terror handler. Using social media and encrypted communication platforms, Bhatti recruits operatives and coordinates criminal activities in India.

He is accused of orchestrating several attacks in north India and has been named in connection with the grenade attack on the residence of a Jalandhar-based YouTuber, Roger Sandhu, as well as the IED car bomb blast at Baldev Nagar police station in Ambala. Bhatti is also believed to be the mastermind behind a grenade attack at a police station in Nalagarh, Himachal Pradesh, in coordination with Babbar Khalsa International (BKI).