Five More Jaish-e-Mohammed Terror Suspects Apprehended in Patan; ATS Uncovers Failed Test Blast Plot

The Gujarat Anti-Terrorist Squad (ATS) has made a significant breakthrough in its ongoing anti-terror campaign, arresting five additional suspects linked to the Pakistan-based terror organisation Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM) from a village in Patan district. The latest arrests have exposed a highly coordinated sleeper cell that was actively testing explosives in rural Gujarat.

Acting on precise intelligence and phone tracking, ATS teams closed in on Khadiyal village in the Siddhpur taluka of Patan, apprehending five men identified as:

• Bilal Abidbhai Shera
• Mohammad Ayub Kadiwal (alias Mohammad Khadiyasan)
• Mohammad Ayub Sunasra (alias Khalid Palanpuri)
• Shafia Rais Mukhi (alias Shafi Chhapi)
• Mohammad Hasan Karadia (alias Hasan Haiderpuri)

According to the public prosecutor, this specific cell was deep into operational preparations. Two of the newly arrested men, Mohammad Ayub Kadiwal and Bilal Shera, were undergoing specialised training to assemble time bombs. Investigators revealed that the group had already gathered gunpowder and volatile chemicals, and had recently attempted to detonate a crude time bomb in a remote, isolated rural area. While that specific test-fire failed, it signalled a dangerous escalation in their readiness.

A local court in Kadi, Mehsana district, has remanded all five suspects to ATS custody until 24 July to allow detectives to locate their hidden stockpiles of explosives.

The Domino Effect: Connecting to the First Wave

These high-profile arrests were the direct result of a domino effect triggered two weeks ago.

This mid-July operation successfully connects the dots back to a massive midnight raid executed by the ATS in early July. In that first phase, authorities arrested eight suspected operatives during simultaneous strikes across Patan, Navsari, and Banaskantha in Gujarat, as well as Dewas district in Madhya Pradesh.

By questioning the initial eight detainees and analysing their encrypted digital footprints, the ATS was able to map out the network, leading them straight to the five suspects caught in Khadiyal village. In total, the ATS has taken 13 terror suspects off the streets in just 15 days, effectively dismantling the entire group.

The Broader Conspiracy

The combined investigation into all 13 suspects paints a chilling picture of cross-border coordination. The entire group was being remotely steered by Pakistan-based JeM handlers known by the aliases 'Abdullah' and 'Mohammad Umar'.

Beyond planning physical attacks, the cell was tasked with establishing a long-term ideological base in the region. To radicalise local youth who did not understand Urdu, the cell was actively translating extremist texts and jihadi literature into Gujarati. Forensic teams have so far seized over 250 radical digital files, handwritten letters addressed to JeM founder Masood Azhar, and official organisational flags.

With all 13 suspects now in custody, central intelligence agencies have joined the Gujarat ATS to trace the financial trails funding this network and ensure no remaining offshoots are left active.