ISI Targeting Indian Students Abroad

• ISI targeting Indian students abroad to build terror modules
• Agencies warn of radicalisation of medical and engineering students

Intelligence agencies have warned that the ISI is now targeting Indian students studying abroad to create what officials describe as “white collared” terror modules. The alert comes amid wider concerns that attempts to intensify radicalisation drives are increasing across the country. Officials noted that radicalisation has been an ongoing issue. However, they said the scale and focus of the new attempts have raised serious alarms within the security establishment.

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Agencies fear that Indian students abroad, especially those studying medicine and engineering, face a higher risk. An official said, “The ISI’s agents are targeting Indian students studying abroad with the aim of radicalising them.” The concern is deeper because many of these students eventually return to India after completing their studies. Therefore, officials believe that radicalised students may pose a major threat to national security upon their return.

Meanwhile, intelligence inputs indicate that Pakistan-based operatives are adopting methods similar to those used in the Faridabad module. That module operated discreetly from 2001 until it was busted. Officials said its members communicated through encrypted platforms and met at universities, hospitals and hostels. These settings were usually seen as low-risk zones. Students discussed logistics and reconnaissance under the guise of group studies. This pattern has prompted agencies to widen their focus beyond India’s borders.

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According to the input shared with central agencies, the ISI has set up a team to identify Indian students pursuing engineering or medicine in countries like the United States, United Kingdom, Germany and Australia. Later, officials also began checking the antecedents of nearly 12,000 Indian students studying medicine in Bangladesh during the 2024 protests that led to the ouster of Sheikh Hasina. Officials noted that the Jamaat-e-Islami’s student wing, Islamic Chhatra Shibir, undertook a major drive at the time to identify, radicalise and recruit Indian students.

Further, officials said the ISI has coordinated with hardline clerics in several countries to reach out to Indian students. Their aim, officials said, is “to keep them ready to strike the moment they return to India.” Therefore, intelligence agencies now fear that multiple modules could be in the making, even though the Faridabad module was dismantled.

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Another official said that Bangladesh remains under the highest scrutiny because the ISI has created an ecosystem with the Jamaat to radicalise Indian students, especially in medical colleges. This network, officials believe, continues to operate despite increased monitoring.

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