Latest news with #Deobandi
Time of India
3 days ago
- Politics
- Time of India
Pakistan: Tablighi Jamaat's grip on Khyber Pakhtunkhwa fuels concerns of radicalisation
Pakistan: Tablighi Jamaat's grip on Khyber Pakhtunkhwa fuels concerns of radicalisation KHYBER PAKHTUNKHWA: The rise of the Tablighi Jamaat in Pakistan's northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province is sparking fears of cultural erosion and the steady grooming of recruits for radical movements. As reported by Himal Southasian, many Pashtuns say the orthodox Deobandi missionary group is dismantling traditional practices while quietly laying the ideological groundwork for extremism. In Bajaur district, a young resident told Himal Southasian that "men and women used to dress fashionably, enjoy music, watch television, visit shrines, and play sports without being judged." Today, he said, the Tablighi Jamaat's puritanical preaching has transformed local life. Activities once central to Pashtun culture are now branded as sinful. "It has changed the cultural landscape drastically," he warned, noting that while the group does not directly preach violence, it produces "raw human resources that can be easily turned into jihadists. " Founded in colonial India in 1926, the Tablighi Jamaat is now a global organisation with millions of followers. In Pakistan, its headquarters in Raiwind, Punjab, commands vast influence. According to Himal Southasian, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa has become one of the movement's most fertile grounds, with the group leveraging its "quietist" image to avoid official scrutiny while embedding Deobandi orthodoxy deep into Pashtun society. The group's impact is most visible in cultural change. Himal Southasian documents how shrines, folk music, mixed-gender dances, and colourful traditional clothing are being replaced by conservative dress codes and rigid segregation. A North Waziristan academic described the Jamaat as "the root of evil... laying the ideological groundwork for the future Taliban" and importing an "Arab culture" that dismisses Pashtun identity. While the Tablighi Jamaat insists it is apolitical and non-violent, Himal Southasian reports that it shares the sectarian orientation of groups such as the Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan. Its close alignment with the Pakistan state's Islamisation project dates back to the 1980s, when military ruler Zia ul-Haq and the Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) used Deobandi networks - including Tablighi circles - to recruit Pashtun fighters for the Afghan jihad against the Soviet Union. Former ISI chief Javed Nasir was himself a Tablighi Jamaat member. Critics in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa told Himal Southasian that the group's influence has depoliticised Pashtun communities, discouraging discussion of exploitation or military abuses. This ideological shift, they argue, suits the Pakistani establishment, which has long used Islam as a tool for domestic control and foreign policy. A Peshawar lecturer warned that "Tablighis are making our people orthodox, helping Islamist sectarian groups" and turning them away from Pashtun nationalism and resistance to militancy. The group's gatherings draw hundreds of thousands annually to Raiwind and regional centres. A businessperson from Khyber district told Himal Southasian that almost every household in the tribal areas now has a member. The Jamaat's appeal as a "peaceful" alternative to militant brutality has made it a mass movement - but one that critics say nurtures a mindset receptive to Taliban influence. Perhaps most troubling, Himal Southasian notes, is the way the Tablighi Jamaat erodes ethnic identity in favour of pan-Islamic loyalty. This mirrors the Taliban's removal of Afghanistan's national flag in favour of the white shahada banner. "Extremism and war have taken away every good thing from us," a South Waziristan student lamented. For Khyber Pakhtunkhwa's embattled Pashtuns, the rise of the Tablighi Jamaat represents more than religious revival - it signals Pakistan's ongoing project to reshape a proud, distinct culture into a pliant tool for its Islamist and geopolitical ambitions. As Himal Southasian's reporting makes clear, the consequences are already visible, and they reach far beyond the mosque walls.
News18
5 days ago
- Politics
- News18
Mahadev, Malegaon, And India's Final War Against Terror
In July 2025, Indian Army killed Pahalgam attack mastermind; UNSC linked TRF to LeT; NIA court acquitted Col Purohit, Sadhvi Pragya in Malegaon case. The last week of July 2025 has seen three significant developments in the world of counterterrorism. In Kashmir, the Indian army neutralised three Pakistani terrorists, including Suleiman Hashim Musa, the mastermind behind the Pahalgam attack. In a parallel development, a UNSC report explicitly stated that the TRF could not have executed the Pahalgam terror attack without support from LeT. The third and most sensitive development was the NIA court's acquittal of Col Purohit, Sadhvi Pragya, and Kulkarni in the Malegaon blast case, following years of torture, harassment, and humiliation in a fabricated, politically motivated, and botched-up investigation. In the past four decades, cross-border terrorism has been at the core of India's security challenges. It began with Khalistan and Kashmir terrorism in the late 70s. At that time, India, complacent about its superiority over Pakistan in conventional warfare, confronted terrorism in Punjab, Kashmir, and the North East. Over these four decades, India has faced the worst and most brutal forms of terrorism, including abductions, hijackings, massacres, minority killings, murders, IED attacks, suicide bombings, and fidayeen attacks. The horrors of Chattisinghpora, Nandimarg, the Parliament attack, bomb blasts in Mumbai, Jaipur, Delhi, Bangalore, and Coimbatore, the 26/11 Mumbai attacks, the Pulwama Fidayeen attack, and the recent Pahalgam attack have bruised India's morale, communal harmony, and stability multiple times. However, India never succumbed to terrorists. It always demonstrated a firm resolve in its fight against terror, even when the West, preoccupied with the spectre of communism, ignored the expansion of Jihadism globally. Left without allies in 1990 after the Soviet Union's disintegration and a collapsing economy, India faced deadly terrorist movements in Kashmir, Punjab, and the North-East. Pakistan, the primary supporter of cross-border terrorism in India, was favoured by the West. In the 1980s, GHQ Rawalpindi carried out covert operations for the CIA. ISI veterans like Col Imam and Gen Hamid Gul trained Deobandi jihadists from Afghanistan and Pakistan for a prolonged proxy war in Afghanistan. In return, Washington provided Pakistan with billions of dollars in aid and military support, which Pakistan diverted to finance terrorist activities in J&K. Fueled by drug money and US backing, Pakistan pursued nuclear ambitions. By the early 1990s, Pakistan was fast closing the nuclear gap with India. India was in a difficult position. With the rise of the Taliban, India lost Afghanistan, another key neighbour and ally. Strategically, Afghanistan's loss was a major setback to India's national security. Under the overarching Pakistani umbrella, the jihadist takeover of Pakistan led to the emergence of numerous terrorist groups, terror training camps, drug smuggling networks, infiltration routes, crime syndicates, and illegal weapons markets. Consequently, an array of transnational Deobandi and Wahhabi terror groups like Harkat-ul-Mujahiddin, Harkat-ul-Ansar, Harkat-ul-Jihad-ul-Islami (HuGI), Lashkar-e-Toiba, Al Badr, and Hizbul Mujahiddin made Kashmir the epicentre of terrorist activities. After Pakistan's successful nuclear tests in 1998, its audacity knew no bounds, unleashing more lethal groups like Jaish-e-Mohammad. India's cautious, measured, moderate, and proportionate military response, combined with diplomatic efforts aimed at peaceful resolution, demonstrated patience and strategic restraint. India's restraint and patience stemmed from practical geopolitical considerations and moral and civilisational values, as reflected in the Ramayana and Mahabharata, where Lord Rama and Krishna sought peace until the very end, even at personal sacrifice. However, India faced the embarrassment of releasing Masood Azhar in exchange for freeing 150 passengers of IC-814. After a series of ISI-orchestrated bomb blasts in Mumbai, Jaipur, Ahmedabad, Bangalore, Coimbatore, Hyderabad, and other cities, India was helpless. ISI's covert capabilities emboldened indigenous jihadist groups like SIMI and IM, who developed close ties with them. Following the 26/11 Mumbai attacks, the then government chose not to retaliate, leaving the average Indian feeling humiliated and betrayed. However, after Modi's rise to power, India broke the shackles and began regaining lost ground on national security. Modi started with a bang. India's surgical strike after the Uri fidayeen attack was the first signal of change, calling out Pakistan's nuclear bluff. But Pakistan refused to accept the change. After Burhan Wani's encounter-death in 2016, ISI masterminds orchestrated widespread violent civil unrest in the Kashmir Valley, followed by a long spell of homegrown insurgency. In some areas of South Kashmir, the state's writ ceased to exist. However, India's massive crackdown soon forced the rioters and stone-pelters to retreat. Following that, the Central government's All-Out operation against terrorists signalled Delhi's force posture with an unprecedented clarity. Modi's message was clear – guns, bombs, and bullets will be met with force, but those who wish to talk are welcome. NIA's massive crackdown on terror funding and the separatist ecosystem dealt a deathblow to separatism and jihadism. For the first time, the Indian government responded with a holistic, bold, and courageous approach, not only against gun-toting terrorists but also against internal subversionists who weakened India's foundations from within as journalists, academics, administrators, engineers, etc. Once again, Pakistan responded with the deadly fidayeen attack in Pulwama, killing 40 Indian soldiers. For the first time, Indian fighter jets flew deep inside Pakistani territory and retaliated with air strikes on Balakot, neutralising 300 Jaish terrorists. The message was clear – India will not succumb to nuclear blackmail and will hit hard inside enemy territory. Continuing its fight against terror, India abrogated Article 370 in 2019, a historic move that still amazes us – ordinary citizens had lost faith in the Indian state's ability to carry out such a measure until Modi removed it. After the Kashmir move, New Delhi invested heavily in development and tourism in Kashmir. Although grievances and grudges about abrogating Article 370 persisted and intensified due to bureaucratic apathy, Kashmir began to change. The youth had new expectations. However, Pakistan refused to relent and changed its strategy. It created an array of proxy terror groups with secular-sounding names like TRF, PAFF, and Kashmir Tigers, so that India would not have a legitimate reason to blame Pakistan after future terror attacks, as its conventional groups like LeT and Jaish were overexposed. Meanwhile, the NIA continued its drive against terror financing, recruitment, and internal subversion. Allegedly, Indian agencies neutralised many terrorist commanders wanted for attacks in India through 'unknown gunmen' in Pakistan. Simultaneously, the Pakistan Army suffered reverses from Baloch separatists and the Islamist TTP. Pakistan made a terror comeback in 2025 with the brutal Pahalgam attack, killing 26 tourists for their religious identity. This time, India launched Operation Sindoor at a scale much higher than the Balakot air strikes and Uri surgical strikes. India destroyed nine terror camps in Pakistan, rained Brahmos missiles, destroyed Pakistan's air-defences, and rendered it vulnerable to full-scale invasion with ground troops. In a daring and unconventional move, India attacked the Nur Khan air base, reportedly a storehouse of Pakistani nuclear assets. An Indian missile attack on its entrance killed 300 people, including soldiers and scientists, inside the underground silo. Initially, India responded moderately, destroying only terror camps. However, Pakistan opened the front along the entire western border with India. Turkish drones, Chinese missiles, and air defences proved ineffective against Indian might. Momentarily, it seemed India was on its way to conquer PoK and move ground forces. However, the attack on the Nur Khan base alarmed Pakistan and its allies in Washington, DC, leading to an unexpected ceasefire. Today, India's official policy states that an act of terror will be regarded as an act of war. Gone are the days when India quietly tolerated cross-border terrorism. This is the era of 'ghar me ghus ke marenge." Reflecting on India's counter-terrorism journey, detailed above, evokes an emotional response among nationalist Indians. With Operation Mahadev, the killers face justice, and the victims receive their due. India emerges strong, confident, and capable of protecting its citizens and inflicting severe punishment on terror sponsors. There was a time when Israel set the benchmarks in counterterrorism. Today, when unknown gunmen kill jihadist commanders in Pakistan and Khalistani extremists in Canada, it instills a sense of pride – doing better than the role model. Furthermore, the UNSC monitoring committee's mention of TRF and its relationship with LeT is a significant diplomatic victory for India. Post-2014, India leads the world in counterterrorism, whether through diplomacy, kinetic operations, or propaganda. After 2019, India's diplomatic heft enabled it to silence many countries, rendering Pakistan's propaganda war ineffective. Today, when the UNSC mentions the unholy nexus between Pakistan's LeT and TRF, it brings shame to Pakistan. Compare this to the days when India's complaints in global multilateral bodies fell on deaf ears. Finally, the acquittal of falsely accused individuals in the Malegaon blast case delivers a crushing blow to internal subversives. It is hard to believe there was a time when the state targeted innocent Hindus, tortured distinguished soldiers, humiliated holy monks, and falsely accused them of terrorism. The state machinery was infiltrated by Islamists and pro-Pakistan elements, with Bollywood working for the underworld mafia in Pakistan, aiding jihadists. Politicians contested elections with fake currency printed in Pakistan, and liberal intellectuals and academics attended conferences and parties of jihadi extremists and ISI spies like Fai in the US. Over the last 14 years, the state has changed dramatically. Today, anyone defending Rohingya settlers and Jihadists in the name of human rights finds little support across the ideological spectrum. Even opposition parties must think twice before undertaking such a suicidal venture. top videos View all As we move forward, it is clear that any future Pahalgam-like terror attack will likely lead to significant cartographic changes in South Asia. However, beyond Kashmir, India faces a major war against Jihadism in its hinterland. Due to polarised social and political discourse, bitter communal tensions, widespread jihadist activities, and Muslim radicalisation, every city sits on a ticking time bomb. Any spark could ignite major civil unrest and communal rioting. India's intelligence and kinetic capabilities require a massive overhaul and upgrade. Sooner or later, we must confront the jihadist juggernaut, which is comprehensive and multifaceted. Additionally, the state must consider its covert links with Pakistan and Bangladesh-based jihadist entities and global jihadist organisations. Before the jihadist machinery makes a final effort to transform India into an Islamist nation by 2047, as the PFI document stated, the state must act systematically, long-term, and determinedly. The author is a policy analyst specialising in counterterrorism, Indian foreign policy and Afghanistan-Pakistan geopolitics. He has done his PhD on Jaish-e-Mohammad. Views expressed in the above piece are personal and solely those of the author. They do not necessarily reflect News18's views. tags : Malegaon blast Pahalgam attack TRF UNSC view comments Location : New Delhi, India, India First Published: August 07, 2025, 15:40 IST News opinion Opinion | Mahadev, Malegaon, And India's Final War Against Terror Disclaimer: Comments reflect users' views, not News18's. Please keep discussions respectful and constructive. Abusive, defamatory, or illegal comments will be removed. News18 may disable any comment at its discretion. By posting, you agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.
Time of India
24-07-2025
- Politics
- Time of India
RSS, Muslim leaders meet to bridge communal divide
New Delhi: Top brass of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh ( RSS ), including its chief Mohan Bhagwat , held a closed-door meeting in New Delhi with senior Muslim clerics, where a proposal was made to initiate dialogue between Mandirs and Masjids, Imams and Pujaris , and Gurukuls and Madrasas to foster trust between the two communities. Clerics from the Deobandi and Barelvi sects, as well as representatives from both Shia and Sunni communities, were present at the meeting. Speaking to ET after the meeting, Imam Umer Ahmed Ilyasi said the objective was to clear misunderstandings between Hindus and Muslims. Explore courses from Top Institutes in Please select course: Select a Course Category Data Science Operations Management Others Degree Product Management Leadership Design Thinking MCA Project Management Healthcare PGDM Artificial Intelligence others healthcare Finance Digital Marketing Public Policy Management MBA Data Analytics Cybersecurity CXO Data Science Technology Skills you'll gain: Strategic Data-Analysis, including Data Mining & Preparation Predictive Modeling & Advanced Clustering Techniques Machine Learning Concepts & Regression Analysis Cutting-edge applications of AI, like NLP & Generative AI Duration: 8 Months IIM Kozhikode Professional Certificate in Data Science and Artificial Intelligence Starts on Jun 26, 2024 Get Details Skills you'll gain: Data Analysis & Interpretation Programming Proficiency Problem-Solving Skills Machine Learning & Artificial Intelligence Duration: 24 Months Vellore Institute of Technology VIT MSc in Data Science Starts on Aug 14, 2024 Get Details Sources in the RSS said Bhagwat emphasised that "the most important and basic fact is that we (Hindus and Muslims) are citizens of one country and share one soul."
India.com
10-07-2025
- Politics
- India.com
Inside India's Digital Conversion Network: How Islamist Syndicates Use Social Apps To Lure Hindu Girls
New Delhi: In what officials characterize as a sustained, non-violent campaign of demographic manipulation, Islamist syndicates operating both inside India and abroad have reportedly targeted Hindu girls using platforms like Telegram, Instagram, Tinder, and Signal. Leveraging covert religious indoctrination and foreign funding, the groups aim to orchestrate mass conversions. According to a News18 report, this operation, termed 'Soft Jihad,' is allegedly rooted in a 40-year ideological blueprint laid out by Pakistan-based Barelvi and Deobandi networks with the goal of reshaping India's demographic composition. Intelligence analysis of Telegram metadata revealed posting and messaging patterns aligned with time zones in the UAE and Qatar, suggesting direction from Gulf-based handlers. The prime targets are Hindu girls aged 15–24, those from lower-middle-class families, whom the syndicates approach with false promises of romantic relationships, career help, or marriage. A senior official told the report, 'They are soft targets who are vulnerable to emotional manipulation.' Once contact is established, the grooming process begins. Authorities say the girls are exposed to religious videos, often featuring speakers like Anwar al-Awlaki and Zakir Naik, extolling the superiority and inevitability of Islam. Over months, psychological dependency sets in, accompanied by mounting religious guilt and pressure to distance themselves from family. Eventually, within six to twelve months, many converts are groomed into becoming recruiters themselves, expanding the operation across Tier‑2 and Tier‑3 cities in Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, and Bihar. Funding for the syndicate reportedly comes from zakat-based contributions routed through sham NGOs such as Delhi's Seher Welfare Society and Lucknow's Sufiya Foundation, both tied to followers of spiritual figure Chhangur Baba, who is under investigation for conversion-linked finances. Agencies say money laundering occurs via cooperative bank accounts, UPI channels, and cryptocurrency wallets connected to Gulf donors. Funds are also routed through hawala networks across Nepal, Bangladesh, and Dubai. One forensic audit of an Axis Bank account in Faizabad showed Rs 80 lakh deposited in a single month, linked to Gulf remittances. In Balrampur, intelligence agencies reported Rs 35 crore channeled through NGOs presenting themselves as education and welfare outfits. The Enforcement Directorate also uncovered Rs 7 crore transferred via UPI IDs linked to dargah networks in Agra, Mathura, Bareilly, and Firozabad, funds used to pay female recruiters. Following conversion, girls are allegedly sent to religious institutions in Kerala and Hyderabad for complete indoctrination and conversion. Fabricated identity documents, Aadhaar, and voter cards under Hindu names like 'Ravi' or 'Mohit', enable seemingly legitimate marriages to operative 'grooms,' often Gulf-trained. Intelligence reports reveal that seminaries like Bhopal's Darul Ulum Tazkiya play a central role in training boys aged 16–22. Between 2018 and 2024, the seminary received Rs 18.5 crore in unaccounted remittances from Doha and Sharjah, primarily for preparing recruiters trained to blend into secular university environments. Another wing of the syndicate, the Agra Dargah Syndicate, operates near Rawatpara shrine, conducting weekly 'healing sessions' to target Hindu women subtly. According to reports, the top sources said, clerics employed 'Bollywood-style' romance plots to ensnare women, offering jobs and marriage under false Hindu identities. From 2018 to 2024, intelligence agencies tracked the trafficking of over 300 girls from SC, ST, and OBC Hindu communities, many relocated to southern India under the guise of religious education and conversion. In April 2025, authorities in Uttar Pradesh arrested two lawyers and a sub-registrar for fabricating conversion affidavits linked to 34 cases in Bareilly and Shahjahanpur. Investigators say the syndicate functions via a multi-state structure, combining digital and physical outreach. A secret Telegram channel, 'Zaytun Council', with more than 2,500 members reportedly coordinates cross-border conversion drives between Kerala and West Bengal. Earlier National Investigation Agency (NIA) probes uncovered over 60 Telegram and Signal groups, largely run out of Kerala, targeting women for conversion and Islamist propaganda. The so-called Kerala Madrasa Web operates both as a safe house and a radicalization hub. Here, newly converted women are given fresh IDs and instructed in digital Dawah tactics, then dispatched to social media to push propaganda. Intelligence agencies consider this soft, nonviolent demographic strategy, blending religious indoctrination, emotional manipulation, foreign money, and covert tech outreach, as one of the most organized threats facing India's internal demographic security. Lacking overt violence, it remains hard to track, shielded by its humanitarian veneer that blurs with legitimate NGOs and social support fronts. Top intelligence sources reveal that dossiers detailing these networks have been shared with central and state enforcement agencies. The warning from officials is clear: this is not a distant threat but a growing reality shaping India's social landscape from within.
News18
10-07-2025
- Politics
- News18
Telegram, Tinder, Zakat: How Islamist Syndicates Use Digital Jihad To Lure Hindu Girls Across India
Last Updated: According to top intelligence sources, the strategy forms part of a 40-year-old ideological plan devised by Pakistan-based Barelvi and Deobandi networks. News18 In what intelligence officials describe as a long-term, non-violent campaign of demographic manipulation, Islamist syndicates based in India and abroad have been systematically targeting Hindu girls through digital platforms like Telegram, Instagram, Tinder, and Signal, using covert religious indoctrination and foreign funding to orchestrate religious conversions. According to top intelligence sources, the strategy forms part of a 40-year-old ideological plan devised by Pakistan-based Barelvi and Deobandi networks with the objective of reshaping India's demographic balance. According to top intelligence sources, this non-violent jihad — sometimes referred to as 'Soft Jihad" — is justified by the circulation of ideological texts such as Ghazwa-e-Hind, and involves psychological and spiritual manipulation rather than overt terrorism. Telegram metadata, as analysed by agencies, shows time zone patterns linked to UAE and Qatar, indicating the involvement of foreign handlers directing operations from the Gulf. Young Hindu girls, particularly those between the ages of 15 to 24, are the primary targets of this operation. Intelligence sources say these girls, often ambitious and from lower-middle-class backgrounds, are approached with false promises of love, career support, or marriage, largely through social media and dating apps. 'They are soft targets who are vulnerable to emotional manipulation," a senior official revealed. Once contact is established, the process begins with religious grooming via videos — many of which forward lectures of Anwar al-Awlaki and Zakir Naik — promoting the idea of Islam as superior and inevitable. 'Over time, they build emotional dependence, followed by religious guilt, and finally isolation from their families," top intelligence sources said. Within 6 to 12 months, converts are allegedly turned into recruiters or liaisons, helping expand the network further. This cycle, sources state, is replicated across Tier-2 and Tier-3 cities in Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, and Bihar. The syndicate's financial backbone is zakat (Islamic charity) routed through fake NGOs, according to enforcement and intelligence agencies. Entities like Seher Welfare Society and Sufiya Foundation, registered in Delhi, Agra, and Lucknow, have come under the scanner. Top intelligence sources confirmed these NGOs are directly linked to the disciples of Chhangur Baba, a key spiritual figure recently investigated for conversion-linked financial fraud. Money is laundered through cooperative bank accounts, UPI IDs, and even cryptocurrency wallets connected to donors in the Gulf. Sources indicate that funds are routed through hawala networks via Nepal, Bangladesh, and Dubai. 'To avoid detection under the FCRA (Foreign Contribution Regulation Act), most donations are split into tranches under ₹10 lakh," intelligence insiders said. A forensic audit of Chhangur Baba's Axis Bank account in Faizabad revealed Rs 80 lakh deposited in a single month, immediately after foreign remittances reached these NGOs. In one case in Balrampur, Rs 35 crore was reportedly routed through such NGOs that claimed to work in education and welfare, top sources stated. In another case, the Enforcement Directorate (ED) found that Rs 7 crore was transferred via UPI IDs linked to dargah networks in Agra, Mathura, Bareilly, and Firozabad, which was used to fund female recruiters. Seminaries, Shrines & Sufis: The Radical Indoctrination Web Once initial trust is established, sources explain, girls are lured into religious seminaries located in places like Kerala and Hyderabad, where they undergo full conversions. Fake ID proofs — Aadhaar cards and voter IDs with Hindu names like 'Ravi" or 'Mohit" — are often used to complete marriages that appear legitimate on paper but are rooted in deception. These grooms, according to sources, are trained operatives with Gulf travel histories. Intelligence sources say the Bhopal Seminary Nexus, involving institutions such as Darul Ulum Tazkiya, plays a central role in ideological training for boys aged 16 to 22. These boys are specifically taught how to blend into secular university campuses while operating covertly. Between 2018 and 2024, a total of ₹18.5 crore in unaccounted remittances was found to have been transferred to seminaries in Bhopal from Doha and Sharjah. The Agra Dargah Syndicate, meanwhile, used a Sufi shrine near Rawatpara to conduct weekly 'healing" sessions, which subtly encouraged Hindu women toward Islam, said top sources. Clerics were also caught offering jobs and marriage under fake Hindu aliases. These operations often had a 'Bollywood-style" romance narrative, meant to emotionally ensnare the targets. In April 2025, two lawyers and a sub-registrar were arrested in UP for fabricating conversion-related consent affidavits — part of a racket linked to 34 cases in Bareilly and Shahjahanpur. Digital Toolkit and Cross-State Machinery Sources reveal the syndicate operates through a multi-state toolkit with a structured digital and physical network. A secret Telegram group named 'Zaytun Council", with over 2,500 members, was discovered to be coordinating cross-border operations between Kerala and West Bengal. The group discussed recruitment targets, ideological content, and funding logistics. The Kerala Madrasa Web, as intelligence sources describe it, functions as a safehouse and radicalisation hub. Newly converted women are provided new IDs and trained in Dawa-based digital propaganda. They are then sent back into social media spaces as evangelists. Earlier, NIA investigations had revealed that more than 60 Telegram and Signal groups, largely operated by handlers based in Kerala, were involved in attempts to convert women and promote global Islamist propaganda. One of the most worrying findings from top intelligence agencies is that more than 300 girls from SC, ST, and OBC Hindu backgrounds have already been trafficked into such marriages between 2018 and 2024. Many were later moved to southern India under the guise of religious education. Major Cases Between 2018 and 2024, intelligence agencies tracked funding inflows to seminaries in Bhopal and Kerala, meant for ideological training of young men. These seminaries, including Darul Ulum Tazkiya, received Rs 18.5 crore in unaccounted remittances from Doha and Sharjah during this period. According to top intelligence sources, these funds were used to train boys aged 16–22 years to operate covertly in universities and secular campuses. In 2023, in a major crackdown, the NIA uncovered a radical Telegram module in Kerala during a multi-state raid. This module, as per intelligence reports, coordinated online grooming and conversion operations targeting Hindu girls, mostly via encrypted platforms like Telegram and Signal. In 2024, authorities exposed a Zakat-funded scholarship scam in Malappuram, Kerala. These scholarships were allegedly being used to incentivise religious conversion of Hindu women under the guise of education. Intelligence sources said the money trail led to Gulf-linked NGOs whose FCRA status was either dormant or under investigation. In 2025, in the latest raids in Balrampur and Agra, ED and intelligence agencies busted a fake ID racket, where Aadhaar and voter cards were forged in Hindu names for the purpose of facilitating marriages and conversions. Intelligence sources confirmed these operations involved caste-based incentives to exploit socio-economic fault lines among SC, ST, and OBC Hindu communities. A Hidden Front in the Ideological War The scale and sophistication of this non-violent jihad campaign — blending religious indoctrination, emotional manipulation, foreign funding, and technological anonymity — marks it as one of the most organised soft threats to India's internal demographic security, according to top intelligence sources. top videos View all What makes it particularly hard to track is the absence of physical violence and the camouflage of social service fronts. The use of legitimate platforms like Telegram, Tinder, Signal, and even educational institutions gives the operations an appearance of normalcy. Top intelligence agencies continue to monitor these networks and have reportedly shared multiple dossiers with central and state enforcement bodies. As per officials, the threat is no longer abstract — it is entrenched, evolving, and silently altering the social fabric of India. About the Author Manoj Gupta Group Editor, Investigations & Security Affairs, Network18 Get breaking news, in-depth analysis, and expert perspectives on everything from politics to crime and society. Stay informed with the latest India news only on News18. Download the News18 App to stay updated! view comments Location : New Delhi, India, India First Published: July 10, 2025, 17:26 IST News india Telegram, Tinder, Zakat: How Islamist Syndicates Use Digital Jihad To Lure Hindu Girls Across India Disclaimer: Comments reflect users' views, not News18's. Please keep discussions respectful and constructive. Abusive, defamatory, or illegal comments will be removed. News18 may disable any comment at its discretion. By posting, you agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.
