The Gujarat Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS) has arrested a 33-year-old woman from Bengaluru for her alleged involvement with the terrorist group Al Qaeda.

The woman, identified as Shama Parveen, is originally from Jharkhand but has been living in the Manorayanapalya area of Bengaluru with her brother, a software engineer.

Police sources say that Shama, a graduate who moved to Bengaluru three years ago, is accused of using Instagram and other platforms to spread extremist ideas and encourage young people to join militancy.

She was arrested on Tuesday after the Gujarat ATS got a transit warrant from a Bengaluru court. She has now been taken to Gujarat for further questioning.

The arrest follows the earlier detention of four men with suspected links to Al Qaeda in the Indian Subcontinent (AQIS). On July 23, the ATS arrested:

  • Mohd Faiq from Delhi

  • Mohd Fardeen from Ahmedabad

  • Sefullah Kureshi from Modasa, Gujarat

  • Zeeshan Ali from Noida

DIG Sunil Joshi of the Gujarat ATS said all individuals were under watch and the arrests were made based on solid intelligence and surveillance.

Speaking on the case, Gujarat Home Minister Harsh Sanghvi confirmed Shama Parveen's arrest and said she was operating an online terror module.

“Gujarat ATS had arrested four AQIS terrorists earlier. Yesterday, a woman from Bengaluru was arrested. She is highly radicalised and runs an online terror module. Important Pakistani contacts have been recovered from her electronic devices,” Sanghvi told reporters.

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