New Delhi, May 14 (IANS) The experiment that the ISI conducted with the Khalistan modules is now being replicated across other networks as well. The idea of bringing gangsters and terrorists together to further operations in India is increasingly becoming a new norm, investigations have revealed.

An official said that the ISI does not want terror groups and gangsters to operate separately. The Pakistan spy agency realises that it would be best to get the two together so that the resources are common. Shared resources and cooperation between criminals have always yielded results and this is what the ISI has been cashing in on, the official added.

What began as an experiment in Punjab is now spreading across to Maharashtra, Gujarat and the Northeastern states as well.

In Punjab, the ISI got together various gangsters working both within India and abroad to liaison with terror networks. The gangster network, which is better aware of the logistics, aids terror groups which in turn carry out attacks.

The gangster network also helps in the supply and circulation of narcotics and the funds generated are used to finance terror groups. The gangster networks also help a great deal in recruitments and these persons are used to carry out small time attacks.

Raids in various states such as Punjab and now Maharashtra have revealed that the ISI wants both networks to operate as one entity.

As compared to recruitment into terror groups, roping in youth into gangster networks is relatively easier. Terror groups come under much higher scrutiny when compared to the gangs. It is this aspect that the ISI has been using of late to synchronise the two networks, an official added.

An Intelligence Bureau official said when it comes to Punjab and the Khalistan movement, the ISI has found a great deal of success in uniting the two networks. From Punjab, it has now moved on to other states and Maharashtra is the next laboratory for this experiment, the official added.

In Maharashtra, the Anti Terrorism Squad (ATS) has managed to unearth a massive gangster-terror network. Raids were conducted across the state with the focus largely on Mumbai, Pune, Jalgaon, Nagpur, Nashik, Nanded, Mira Road and Nalasopara.

The ISI backed elements had been using social media extensively to rope in the youth. The idea is to get them to supply drugs and raise funds for terror networks. The raids and subsequent investigations revealed that there is a well-oiled mechanism in place to facilitate the sale of drugs. The operations which were being overlooked by the Shahzad Bhatti network was being facilitated by the Dogar Gang.

Bhatti is originally from Lahore and has been on the payrolls of the ISI for several years now. He operates largely from Dubai and Pakistan.

Another official said that the big plan of the ISI is to get gangs and terrorists together across the country. They would be given a designated area to operate from. For instance the gangsters who are aligned to the Khalistan terror network would not be used for operations in Maharashtra or the other states. Similar would be the case when it comes to Delhi or Uttar Pradesh.

The official added that this modus operandi is becoming a headache for the security agencies. What the coming together of both these networks does is create confusion for the agencies.

Terror groups and gangster networks operate differently. The gangsters are more cash driven, but for terror groups it is largely ideology that matters.

However for the ISI, the primary focus is to unleash terror in India. It could be in the form of blasts, fidayeen strikes, narcotics supply and financial terrorism. The official explained that when it comes to terror in India, the ISI follows no ideology. The destruction of India or bleeding the nation by a thousand cuts is all that matters to Pakistan.

Officials say that the gangster-terror network is becoming a major headache. The fact that the ISI plans to replicate a similar modus operandi across the country is something that the agencies would have to deal with.

This would require cooperation between the central and state agencies. Minoring the social media is very important as it has been found in all similar investigations that this medium is being used the most to run this network while also carrying out the recruitment process, the official further added.

–IANS

vn/rad