One name, many modules: ISI pushes 'Ghazwa-e-Hind' to build mass movement in India

One name, many modules: ISI pushes “Ghazwa-e-Hind’ to build mass movement in India

New Delhi, May 2 (IANS) In recent months, the agencies have busted several modules linked to the ISI, Pakistan. One thing in common that the police found was the mention of Ghazwa-e-Hind or the destruction of India as the main theme of all these modules.

ISI-backed modules have been busted in recent months in Delhi, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, Odisha and Bihar. In each of these modules, the police found Ghazwa-e-Hind literature.

An Intelligence Bureau official said that this looks like a pattern. Although the modules may not be inter-linked, the one thing they had in common was this slogan and also the ISI link.

While the slogan has always been the core of every Pakistani group, in the Indian modules that are being busted, the same is being extensively used these days, the official explained.

Another official said that this narrative has been pushed by none other than Pakistan army chief, Asim Munir. Post Operation Sindoor, in a bid to save face, Munir had lied about Pakistan’s response to the terror groups. A Jaish-e-Mohammad operative, Ilyas Kashmir, quoted Munir as saying that the army had undertaken Ghazwa-e-Hind in response to Operation Sindoor.

Another official said that there is a sustained narrative push being made from Pakistan to extensively use this slogan in India. It is impactful, and terror recruits within India find it fashionable to use this slogan, the official added.

Ghazwa-e-Hind is being used extensively as a recruitment tool in India. These recruits are sold dreams about how much better their lives would be once India is destroyed. They are promised a new country in the aftermath of the destruction of India, and that would be a better place for them, these recruits are also told.

The experts say that the ISI is also hoping that the continuous use of this slogan would eventually make it viral. They want this slogan to be part of the discussion within India and hope that more and more youth will join terror groups, the experts also say.

Most of these modules that have been busted do not have proper names. They are not affiliated directly with any terror group in Pakistan. Instead, they have been told to just call them Ghazwa-e-Hind modules. The ISI hopes to create multiple Ghazwa-e-Hind modules across the country with the hope that it would go on to become a movement, an official said.

The Intelligence agencies have been warning that the ISI is making a massive push for homegrown modules in India. It wants to bring back those days when the Indian Mujahideen was active in India. The agencies were aware that the Indian Mujahideen was Pakistan-controlled. However, during the probe, it was exceptionally hard to nail the Pakistan link to the outfit. The material was sourced locally, and even the finances were raised within the country. Moreover, the communication with Pakistani handlers was zero, and the operatives who worked in a very small network discussed plans among themselves.

The ISI wants to create such a scenario. However, this time the push that is being made is slightly different when compared to the Indian Mujahideen. There would not be just one terror group which would be in operation. The ISI hopes to have multiple of them in various parts of the country, and it would ensure that they are not inter-linked. To send out a message loud and clear across the country, the ISI decided that all these groups would be just called Ghazwa-e-Hind, an official said.

--IANS

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