Yahya, a suspected terrorist arrested in Bangalore

The Corps of Detectives (CoD) arrested Yahya Kammukutty, a software engineer on the charges of suspected terrorist link in Bangalore on Thursday.

According to CoD the person arrested can provide useful link to break the terrorist nexus across the country. The police could nab him after another terrorist suspect Mohammed Asif revealed Yahya’s name during interrogation.

Yahya with an engineering degree was an employer of reputed US multinational firm and an active member of banned Student’s Islamic Movement of India (SIMI) organisation. Reportedly he was sacked by the US Company in 2007 while he was trying to steal data and was also interrogated in connection with the IISC attack in 2005 but was let off by the police due to lack of evidence.

The suspected terrorist is a native of Mukkom a village in Kerala in district Kozhikode, and was residing in Bangalore in Guruappanpalayam area where once flourished the SIMI organisation before 2001 when it was banned after Babri Masjid demolition.

North Kerala has become the suspected hotbeds of terrorist organisation; the educated students are lured in such terrorist organisation through money or in the name of jihad. This arrest has increased the suspicion that north Kerala is being used as place to support such crimes.

Various Jihadi literatures, Laptops and several hard disks have been discovered from Yahya’s house and police are looking for more information in the case. Reportedly the Yahya and his associates used to meet in Hubli in Karnataka.

The members CoD took him to Hubli to produce him before the court as the case has been registered there; he is in police custody till March 6.

This arrest has highlighted the fact that many highly educated people are being used as terrorist, unlike earlier perception that terrorist comes from humble background. Recently the trend is showing that a terrorist can be a doctor, an engineer from a rich background.

Earlier two SIMI activists were arrested in Hubli in Karnataka and these cases again show that South India especially the metro city Bangalore is becoming an active ground for terrorist for operation.

Government now has to be more vigilant and make sure that Islamic extremists organisation like SIMI doesn’t make their presence in different parts of the country. The suspect terror outfit SIMI has been banned by the government of India since 2001 and lately re-imposed the ban under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act 1967.