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Two residents of Andhra Pradesh were arrested by the National Investigation Agency (NIA) on Saturday, August 16, based on suspicion of having links with terror groups based in Pakistan.
The arrested individuals have been identified as Kothwal Noor Mohammed, a 40-year-old resident of Dharmavaram town in Sri Sathya Sai district, and a 35-year-old woman from Tadipatri in Anantapur district.
According to reports, the NIA discovered that Kothwal was regularly communicating with suspected terror operatives in Pakistan via social media. His interactions with the woman from Tadipatri were also considered suspicious by investigators.
In a joint operation with the local police, the NIA officials arrested Kothwal from his residence.
Speaking to the media, Deputy Superintendent of Police in-charge (DSP) U Narsingappa said that Kothwal was arrested after he was found to belong to some terror groups. “We recovered two SIM cards from him, and further investigation is underway to determine his level of involvement with these groups,” he said.
DSP Narsingappa also added that Kothwal was working as a cook in a hotel and officials had seized "terrorist literature" from him.