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New Delhi: Deceased terrorist Saquib Nachan’s body reached his village, Padgha in Maharashtra. The last rites of the man who died at a Delhi hospital will be performed at his native place. Police forces have been deployed in the village to maintain order during the funeral and security agencies are also on alert.

According to officials, Nachan’s last rites would be performed in Borivali village on Monday, at 10 am and he will be buried in the cemetery of the village itself.

Nachan was arrested by the National Investigating Agency (NIA) as he was heading the India wing of the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria(ISIS), Maharashtra module. He died following a brain hemorrhage.  He was being treated at Delhi’s Safdarjung Hospital, police said.

Padgha village: Brewing ground for terrorism

Nachan was previously arrested in 2023 for operating ISIS modules in parts of Delhi and Maharashtra’s Padgha. Over  200 police personnel have been deployed across Padgha village. “We are keeping a tab on the situation”, the Times of India quoted an official as saying.

After his release in 2017, Nachan once again came under the police radar, as officials cracked down on the ISIS module operating in the Delhi- Padgha region.

The NIA says, Nachan and his gang were involved in several terrorist activities and were receiving orders from foreign nationals. The module declared Padgha village as a “liberated zone” to influence vulnerable Muslims to relocate to the village. The village is known as a brewing ground for terrorist activities. Several villagers have been arrested for their involvement in terror-related activities.

Investigating agencies said that Nachan declared the village an independent zone and it was the centre for their alleged anti-national operations.

Who was Saquib Nachan?

Saquib Nachan was from Padgha, a town in Maharashtra’s Thane district. He was once a top leader in the Students Islamic Movement of India (SIMI), which was banned in 2001 due to its anti-national activities. He was arrested for carrying out the 2002 – 2003 Mumbai bomb blasts.

He held the position of self-proclaimed Amir-e Hind for ISIS in India. The NIA arrested him, for his involvement in the creation of improvised explosive devices (IEDs) intended for terrorist operations.

According to reports, Nachan was the prime accused and self-proclaimed leader, operating the Bayath oath of allegiance to the self-styled Khalifa of ISIS for new members.