Mumbai man working as Rapido driver arrested for links to Jaish-e-Mohammed, remarks against PM
PTC News Desk: A 33-year-old Rapido driver in Mumbai has been arrested by the Maharashtra Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS) over suspected links with the banned terrorist organisation Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM) and allegedly making threatening remarks against Prime Minister Narendra Modi on social media.
The accused, Mohammad Hasan Abu Sarmad Akhtar, is a resident of Mahim in Mumbai. The ATS traced him to an area near Mahim Metro Station after receiving a tip-off.
According to investigators, Akhtar worked as a Rapido driver and sold perfumes while allegedly spreading radical ideology. The agency also suspects that he was in contact with a Pakistani intelligence operation.
Investigators alleged that Akhtar promoted religious hatred and shared audio clips of JeM chief Maulana Masood Azhar related to the Babri Masjid issue in a Telegram group called “Indian Muslim”. He had also subscribed to a radical Pakistani Telegram channel named “IBN E Qasim”.
Threatening posts on social media
According to the investigation, Akhtar repeatedly shared provocative content on X and Instagram, including calls for jihad and messages encouraging violence.
In a recent comment on a post about a security breach in Mumbai ahead of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit, he allegedly wrote a remark suggesting that Modi should face a fate similar to former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi, referring to her assassination.
The ATS seized a Redmi Note 14 Pro mobile phone from the accused and collected 39 screenshots of his alleged objectionable social media posts as part of the investigation.
Akhtar has been booked under Section 196(1) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), which deals with promoting enmity between different religious groups.
One of the accused in that shooting case had reportedly worked as a Rapido rider and allegedly used his job to conduct surveillance in upscale neighbourhoods where Bollywood celebrities live.
Rapido, however, said the individual involved in that case had not been active on its platform since October 14.
"We are deeply concerned by the incident involving Mr. Tiger Shroff and his team, and we are relieved that he is safe. We wish him a swift recovery. We are aware of media reports mentioning an individual registered as a captain on the Rapido platform. He has not been active as a captain on our platform since 14th October. As is common in India's larger gig economy, individuals may be registered with several platforms at the same time. On the day of the incident, the individual had used Rapido's services as a customer," the company said in a post on X.
In July, the Gujarat ATS detained five people during an investigation into an alleged terror module linked to JeM.
- PTC NEWS
