NEW DELHI: A city court on Thursday sent a 44-year-old man, allegedly a member of the banned Pakistan-based terror outfit Falah-i-Insaniyat Foundation (FIF), to five days of NIA custody in connection with a terror funding case.
The case also involves Jamat-ul-Dawa and Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) chief Hafiz Saeed. Additional Sessions Judge Anil Antil allowed the NIA to quiz Mohammad Arif Ghulam Bashir Dharampuria in its custody. The agency had sought 12-day custody of the accused. Dharampuria, a resident of Valsad district in Gujarat, was arrested at the Indira Gandhi International Airport (IGIA) on his arrival from Dubai on Wednesday.
The case pertains to receiving funds sent by FIF operatives to their associates through hawala operators to further nefarious activities and create unrest in India. Defence counsel MS Khan opposed the NIA plea and told the judge that the arrest was unwarranted since the accused had already filed an application before a court seeking time to surrender, and had come to India for joining the probe.
He also said that Dharampuria was in telephonic contact with the agency and was cooperating with the investigation. This is the fifth arrest in this case. The others arrested are Mohammad Salman and Mohammad Salim, both residents of Delhi, and Sajjad Ahmad Wani and Mohd Husain Wani, natives of Srinagar. The four are in judicial custody.
According to NIA, the accused was evading examination and arrest by hiding in Dubai, and a look out circular was issued by the NIA against him.