A 30-year-old woman, Shama Parveen, has been arrested by the Gujarat Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS) from her rented flat in Manorayanapalya, Hebbal, Bengaluru, for her alleged involvement with a terror module linked to Al-Qaeda in the Indian Subcontinent (AQIS). Officials described her as a key conspirator and handler, accused of coordinating activities from Karnataka.
What do we know about the arrest?
According to police sources, Shama Parveen had been under surveillance as part of a larger probe into individuals connected to terror outfits through social media. Investigators found that she was actively sharing posts related to radical ideology, downloading extremist speeches, and reposting them on her Instagram account to garner sympathy and support. Officials believe her actions aimed to radicalise others and promote extremist narratives.
Who is Shama Parveen?
Originally from Jharkhand, Parveen had been living in Bengaluru for the past three years with her younger brother, who is employed in the city. She is reportedly single and unemployed, and used her time to manage online communication linked to radical networks. Her presence had not attracted local attention until the ATS, tracking digital footprints of suspected individuals, flagged her for repeated interactions with known extremist profiles and content.
Sources also revealed that she was following and interacting with several individuals arrested recently by ATS units in other states for terrorism-related offences. Investigators believe that she played an important role in maintaining online contact with operatives and was possibly involved in disseminating propaganda material.
Pakistani links
Following her arrest, Gujarat’s Home Minister Harsh Sanghvi confirmed that Parveen had been highly radicalised, with important Pakistani contacts discovered through data recovered from her mobile phone and other electronic devices. Authorities claim she managed a small terror module online, aiding AQIS operatives in their efforts to expand their digital influence and possibly coordinate future attacks.
This development comes shortly after the Gujarat ATS had arrested four AQIS-linked terrorists from different parts of the country, all reportedly part of a larger conspiracy to carry out attacks in India.
Parveen was produced before a local court in Bengaluru, where the Gujarat ATS obtained a transit warrant to take her into custody for further interrogation and investigation in Gujarat. Officials expect her questioning to yield more information about online radical networks, sleeper cells, and foreign handlers operating from across the border.