The Maharashtra Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS) revealed that Pune-based software engineer Zubair Hangargekar (37), arrested on October 27, had links with the terror group al-Qaeda, and was preaching to youth that “democracy is against Shariat” and created content on topics, including Jihad and “Ghazwa-e-Hind”, the takeover of the Indian subcontinent by a Caliphate.
According to the ATS, Zubair created “extremist content” and shared radical material on Ghazwa-e-Hind, the establishment of the Khilafat, and the implementation of Shariyat on his own Telegram groups involving youth and like-minded individuals. The ATS highlighted that these youth discussed replacing democracy with Shariyat and dissolving national boundaries by working for a “united global Ummah”.
A senior ATS officer from Pune said, “The secret Dars sessions were conducted in Pune, Solapur, and Thane to radicalise youth. During these sessions, he lectured them on ‘ways to commit jihad’ and the path to bring Khilafat.”
Zubair, who holds a B.E. degree from Walchand Institute of Technology, Solapur, was arrested from Pune’s Kondhwa area during the ATS raids in October for his alleged links with the al-Qaeda. During the raid, 18 individuals were searched, and their devices were sent for forensic examination. Zubair was arrested on October 27 and remanded in judicial custody till November 28.
Magazines seized
During the investigation, police seized several al-Qaeda and AQIS magazines and manuals on building IEDs from his laptop and mobile phone, glorifying jihad and martyrdom through jihad. “These magazines openly urge readers to establish Khilafat rule in India through violent jihad. He read content produced by radical preachers from the Middle East, Afghanistan, and Pakistan and studied major al-Qaeda attacks in depth, including the 9/11 attack,” the Pune ATS officer said.
According to the ATS, he had a 15-year career as a software engineer and turned to extremism around 2015, when he came into contact with known terrorism-linked individuals in Pune and Hyderabad.
Published – November 17, 2025 09:28 pm IST