By Ananya Bhatnagar 

Terror accused surgeon Dr Sabeel Ahmed, who was deported from Saudi Arabia last year, was sent to judicial remand till March 31 by a Delhi court on Wednesday.

Additional Sessions Judge Dharmendra Rana sent Ahmed to judicial custody after he was produced before the court. “Considering the nature of allegations and intricate nature of Investigation, accused Sabeel Ahmed is remanded to judicial custody till 31.03.2021,” the order read. 

The directions came after the prosecution filed an application through Additional Public Prosecutor Irfan Ahmed seeking judicial remand of the accused. Advocates Ankit Karna and Mark Morris appeared for the accused surgeon. 

In August last year, Dr Sabeel Ahmed, an alleged Al Qaeda in Indian Subcontinent (AQIS) operative, was brought to Delhi from Saudi Arabia. He is a cousin of the 2007 Glasgow attack mastermind Kafeel Ahmed. He had moved from Bengaluru to Saudi Arabia in 2010-11. “He is said to be a part of the network that planned a drone attack in India,” an agency official had said then.

Ahmed was also wanted in a case registered by the Delhi Police Special Cell in 2015. He was declared a proclaimed offender by a Delhi court on July 12, 2016. The Delhi Police’s Special Cell accused Sabeel of being among Indians who were allegedly trying to establish AQIS.

The Special Cell of the Delhi Police arrested him last week and brought him to Delhi from Bengaluru on a 10-day transit police custody in connection with matter relating to allegedly trying to establish the AQIS.

Ahmed was deported from Saudi Arabia and brought to India last year. He was arrested by the National Investigation Agency in connection with a case pertaining to a conspiracy hatched by members of Lashkar-e-Taiba and Harkat-ul-Jehad-e-Islami to commit subversive activities and wage war against the Government of India. The NIA has charge-sheeted him before the NIA Special Court, Bengaluru.

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