UP ATS arrests Varanasi resident for alleged links to Pakistan-based anti-national WhatsApp groups

Varanasi (Uttar Pradesh) [India], May 22 (ANI): The Uttar Pradesh Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS0) received intelligence that Tufail, son of Maqsood Alam, a resident of Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh, was associated with a WhatsApp group created by Pakistan-backed anti-national organizations aimed at harming India's sovereignty, unity, and integrity, said a an official statement.
Tufail is a resident of Doshipura, Jaitpura, District in Varanasi.
It was also reported that the individual was sharing important internal security-related information with Pakistani phone numbers.
According to the release, upon developing this intelligence, the ATS field unit in Varanasi confirmed that the accused, Tufail, was in contact with multiple individuals in Pakistan. Tufail was sharing videos of Maulana Shad Rizvi, a leader of the terrorist organisation Tehreek-e-Labbaik in Pakistan, on WhatsApp groups. He was also sharing messages calling for "Ghazwa-e-Hind," avenging the Babri Masjid incident, and implementing Sharia law in India.
Tufail had shared images and information related to several key Indian locations, including Rajghat, Namoghat, Gyanvapi, the railway station, Jama Masjid, Red Fort, and Nizamuddin Auliya, with Pakistani numbers.
He also circulated the link to these Pakistan-run groups among many other people in Varanasi. Tufail was reportedly in contact with over 600 Pakistani numbers.
He was also in contact via Facebook with a woman named Nafeesa, a resident of Faisalabad, Pakistan, whose husband is reportedly in the Pakistani army.
On May 22, 2025, Tufail was arrested from Adampur, Varanasi under FIR No. 05/25, Sections 148/152 of the BNS (Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita) at ATS Police Station, Lucknow. The accused will be presented before the Honourable Court as per legal procedure for further judicial action.
His mobile phone and SIM cards were also seized. (ANI)