Bhatkal brothers helping IM regroup, says IB

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Home Minister P Chidambaram have both warned that terror groups from across the border are trying to create havoc in the country. While Indian security agencies have stepped up their guard against attacks from across the border, the Intelligence Bureau has warned that the Indian Mujahideen is trying to regroup in the northern and western parts of India.

IB sources told rediff.com that the crackdown on the IM had largely disrupted their plans to spread terror in India, but now they are trying to regroup and carry out a fresh set of terror strikes, led by the elusive Riyaz Bhatkal and his brother Iqbal.

With the heat on Riyaz Bhatkal increasing by the day, the onus of leading the terror outfit has been handed over to his brother Iqbal Bhatkal, who police sources believe is based in India. Iqbal has been asked to target the states of Rajasthan, Gujarat and Maharashtra.

The IB says that the terror groups follow a very predictable pattern over the years, infiltrations at the borders are doubled as a ploy to distract Indian security agencies, while the local units unleash terror.

The IB says that it is important to nab both the Bhatkal brothers since they are the top-rung of the IM leadership in India and involved in the planning terror strikes. The Bhatkal brothers also act as mentors and motivators for terror recruits. 

The IB believes that Iqbal Bhatkal may have already activated several sleeper cells in Guajrat and Rajasthan. Iqbal who is also named in the Ahmedabad blasts case is believed to have been specifically instructed to recruit more youth into the IM and also activate several more sleeper cells so that the supply of arms and ammunition into these states can be smooth.