New jihadi module IMK busted in Assam

An offshoot of Bangladesh-based JMB, IMK propagates the ideology of ‘Ghazwatul Hind’

- NIBIR DEKA

After Jihadi module bust, accused confess to 'Indoctrination Funding and Armed Jihad Plans' in Assam.

The Indian security and intelligence apparatus has been keeping a hawk’s eye on jihadi activities in Northeast India, witha particular focus on Assam. Based on the analysis of central intelligence agencies, a new module — the Imam Mahmuder Kafila (IMK) — has been busted by the Assam Police.

The ‘Imam Mahmuder Kafila’ (IMK) is a Bangladesh-based offshoot of Jamaat-ul-Mujahideen Bangladesh (JMB), which is banned in India. IMK was founded in 2018 by Jewel Mahmud, also known as Imam Mahmud Habibullah, and Sohail, an ex-JMB member who claims to be the Amir of IMKand propagates the ideology of ‘Ghazwatul Hind’.

Police sources revealed that following the regime change in Bangladesh in August 2024, senior leaders of JMB, Ansarullah Bangla Team (ABT) and Al-Qaeda in the Indian Subcontinent (AQIS) issued directions to the IMK leadership to activate and expand its Indian modules. Consequently, Bangladeshi nationals Umar and Khalid were assigned to coordinate Assam-based activities. The head of the Assam cell is Nasim Uddin, alias Tamim, of Barpeta Road in Assam.

These activities were coordinated through secure social media platforms. One such group, titled ‘Purva Akash’, functioned as a principal communication and recruitment platform. Individuals based in Assam, West Bengal and Tripura were radicalised, recruited, financially mobilised and connected with the outfit, including persons holding Indian passports, those with prior visits to Bangladesh, and known former members of proscribed terrorist organisations.