Bhubaneswar: A team of Delhi police special cell, with the help of city police, arrested a youth, Sheikh Imran, in the city for allegedly spreading radical content on social media to influence and radicalise young people against India.Police said the action followed an ongoing probe by the special cell and cyber units of Delhi into the suspicious social media activity linked to radicalisation. A week ago, the special cell picked up a group of young boys in Delhi in connection with posts and exchanges on social media platforms.“During interrogation of those detained in Delhi and analysis of their social media activity, investigators found links leading to Odisha. Acting on the lead, Delhi police, with assistance from the city police team in Bhubaneswar, apprehended Imran from the Unit-VI area on Friday,” said a police officer linked to the operation.According to police, Imran is an unemployed youth and was allegedly functioning as an active member of a radical network operating through encrypted and closed social media groups. Investigators said he came in contact with a close group on WhatsApp and Signal where radical material with a religious tone was being circulated. “Delhi Police found the link to Odisha and assisted in locating and apprehending the youth,” said twin cities police commissioner S Dev Datta Singh.After his apprehension, Imran was produced in a local court that granted his transit remand to Delhi police. Police alleged that the content shared in these groups was aimed at influencing impressionable youths and was detrimental to national security. “During his interrogation in Delhi, his antecedent, past activities and people associated with him in Bhubaneswar can be uncovered,” a police officer said.Sources said the probe has already led to the detention of several persons in Delhi, and further questioning of those suspects helped police identify Imran’s alleged role in the network. Investigators are now examining his digital devices, social media accounts and communication records to trace the wider chain of contacts and determine whether more people were involved.
