New Delhi, February 28 – Intelligence agencies have raised concerns about the revival of Ansar Ghazwat-ul-Hind (AGuH), an outfit with close links to Al-Qaeda.
The outfit was formed by Zakir Rashid Bhat in July 2017 in Jammu and Kashmir. Bhat, also known as Zakir Musa, took over as the chief of the outfit with the blessing of Al-Qaeda. The intention was to carry out terror attacks in Jammu and Kashmir. The outfit did not achieve much success and was largely dismantled by Indian security agencies.
Musa was originally part of Hizbul Mujahideen. However, he left to form AGuH with the blessing of Al-Qaeda. Musa was, however, killed in an encounter in 2019 at Tral in Jammu and Kashmir.
Following Musa's death in 2019, AGuH remained relatively quiet. However, in 2022, it decided to make a comeback. The strategy was different. It decided to provide support to Jaish-e-Mohammed to undertake operations in India. Al-Qaeda, which mentors this outfit, gave AGuH the go-ahead, but insisted that operations in Jammu and Kashmir would not be carried out directly.
AGuH then decided that it would direct operations in other parts of the country from Jammu and Kashmir. This explains the successful establishment of the Faridabad module, which had many operatives who were inspired by the ideology of AGuH and Jaish-e-Mohammed.
Umar Nabi, who carried out the car bomb blast near the Red Fort on November 10, 2025, was inspired by the ideology of this outfit. He was being handled by one Mufti Irfan, who was an asset for both AGuH and Jaish-e-Mohammed.
An Intelligence Bureau official said that AGuH sought to send out a message when its Faridabad module planned a series of attacks in Delhi and nearby areas. This operation was meant to announce that the outfit is back. The official said that the pattern of the revival is different this time. The ISI, which has been trying to set up multiple homegrown modules in India, is relying heavily on AGuH for the same.
Another official explained that the intention is to set up many more modules in North India on the lines of what was set up in Faridabad. The ISI wants AGuH to be the primary force when it comes to operations in North India. AGuH has several members across North India, and they would be used to set up these modules. The ISI has instructed AGuH members in Jammu and Kashmir to oversee these operations in North India.
Another official said that investigations have shown that the operations are not being guided from Pakistan. AGuH has managed to set up a dedicated team of operatives in Jammu and Kashmir and Nepal as well.
During a high-level meeting of the Ministry of Home Affairs, AGuH was discussed at length. The Intelligence agencies are aware of the plans that this outfit has. However, it is now important to trace the source of funding that will be used for such a major operation.
Officials suspect that cryptocurrency is being used to fund this operation. In the last several months, there has been a lot of chatter that the agencies have picked up regarding the revival mission of AGuH. Handlers from both Nepal and Jammu and Kashmir are in regular touch with operatives from various parts of North India.
Officials say that eventually AGuH would look to operate in a big way in Jammu and Kashmir. However, for now, that scenario is not possible, and any attempt to operate in Kashmir would attract a lot of heat. AGuH would instead focus on setting up Faridabad-like modules across North India, while maintaining a very low key in Jammu and Kashmir. If they are busted in J&K, then their North India aspirations would fail miserably, the official also added.
