It was around a couple of days back that the National Investigation Agency (NIA) arrested three migrant workers for allegedly having terror links with Al-Qaeda from Perumbavoor Kerala.
The investigation team also seized a locally-made gun, knives, and other sharp weapons from terrorists. The arrest was recorded just a few days after a UN record warned about potential ISIS activities in Kerala and Karnataka.
Kerala emerging as a hotbed of terrorist activities
This is not the first time that terrorists are getting arrested in Kerala. A few years back, NIA revealed that 27 young people, comprised of males and females from Kerala had visited Iraq and Syria to become a part of the Islamic State. Shockingly, on September 21, NIA again raided several areas in Kerala and arrested two more people for alleged terror links.
According to NIA, these terrorists were planning to conduct bomb blasts and attacks in New Delhi. The team had apparently visited many places to raise funds, and the arrest was made at a time when they were planning to visit Delhi soon.
Rise of Al-Qaeda
Following the death of Osama Bin Laden, several political experts had claimed that it could mark the end of the operations of Al-Qaeda. Soon, ISIS became the spearhead in initiating terror attacks all across the world, and Al-Qaeda's name slowly started fading from news headlines.
However, the recent arrests made by NIA indicates that Al-Qaeda members are still active in large numbers, and there are many sleeper cells in the country, planning to carry out terrorist attacks.
NIA officers believe that the terrorists have received support from some organisations in Kerala, and they are trying to bust the entire group behind these terror activities.
Social media used to propagate terrorist ideologies
NIA is also monitoring several social media groups in Malayalam, that are trying to propagate terrorist ideologies. NIA considers these groups as nourishing grounds of radical ideologies, and most of the members in these social media groups are young men aged between 18-35.
However, neither Pinarayi Vijayan nor the home ministry has issued a statement regarding the recent arrests made in Kerala. BJP leaders in the state, including K Surendran, alleged that the Kerala government has failed in curbing terrorism, and he claims that the government is not making any public statement due to their minority appeasement agenda.
