Centre Designates Pakistan-Based Shahzad Bhatti Network as Terrorist Organisation Under UAPA

Yugcharan News / 16-09-2026

NEW DELHI: The Union government has formally designated the Pakistan-based Shahzad Bhatti Network (SBN) as a terrorist organisation under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA), placing the group on the First Schedule of the law and bringing it under the legal framework applicable to organisations designated as terrorist entities.

The Ministry of Home Affairs issued a gazette notification on September 16 invoking Section 35(1)(a) of the UAPA, 1967, to add Shahzad Bhatti Network to the list. The notification states that the government believes the organisation is involved in terrorism and has participated in various acts of terrorism in India. With the addition, SBN becomes the 46th organisation listed in the First Schedule of the UAPA.

Union Home Minister Amit Shah announced the decision, saying the move was consistent with the government's stated approach of maintaining zero tolerance towards terrorism. In his statement, Shah alleged that the network was involved in the cross-border smuggling of arms, explosives and narcotics and in encouraging young people and petty criminals to participate in terrorist activities.

According to the Home Ministry, the network also used digital platforms to circulate provocative and hateful material. The government has alleged that these activities were aimed at threatening India's democratic institutions, communal harmony and internal security.

What the UAPA notification says

The gazette notification provides the legal basis for the government's designation of SBN. It says the organisation's objective includes involving vulnerable youth and local criminals in the smuggling of arms, explosives and narcotics from across the border and using terrorist activities to create a threat to India's democratic system, communal harmony and internal security.

The notification also refers to criminal cases registered against alleged members or cadres of the network under several laws. These include the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, Arms Act, UAPA, Explosive Substances Act, Explosives Act, Information Technology Act, Delhi Prevention of Defacement of Property Act, Official Secrets Act and Immigration and Foreigners Act.

The Home Ministry further alleged that SBN had sought to radicalise young people by offering inducements and encouraging them to participate in activities described by the government as anti-national. The notification says the network was also involved in mobilising resources in coordination with other banned organisations and designated entities.

The government further alleged that the network used digital communication platforms to distribute provocative messages and promote violent activities that could disrupt public order. These allegations form part of the government's stated grounds for bringing SBN under the UAPA's First Schedule.

Action follows August multi-state operation

The designation comes roughly a month after a coordinated security operation was conducted across 14 states ahead of Independence Day.

According to the Ministry of Home Affairs, the operation took place on August 12 and involved central security agencies working with state police forces through a real-time intelligence-sharing mechanism. The government said the operation was intended to prevent alleged disruptions and subversive attacks associated with the network around August 15.

A total of 253 people were detained during the operation across 14 states, while more than 80 FIRs and over 200 arrests had cumulatively been recorded in cases linked to SBN, according to the government.

Uttar Pradesh recorded the highest number of detentions at 62, followed by Haryana with 52, Delhi with 51 and Punjab with 44. Rajasthan reported 15 detentions, Maharashtra eight and Uttarakhand five. Karnataka, Gujarat and Bihar recorded three each, while Telangana, Himachal Pradesh, Jammu and Kashmir and Kerala recorded two each. Fresh FIRs were also registered in Delhi and Karnataka.

The government said the wider investigation involved cases registered under the UAPA, Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, Arms Act, Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act and Explosive Substances Act.

Security agencies also reported the recovery of improvised explosive devices, grenades bearing Pakistan Ordnance Factory markings, pistols, live cartridges and CCTV cameras that investigators allegedly suspected were intended for surveillance or espionage-related activity.

Alleged cross-border network

Indian agencies have described SBN as a Pakistan-based network and have alleged links with Pakistan's Inter-Services Intelligence, or ISI. These allegations have been cited by Indian authorities and investigative agencies in connection with the network's alleged operations inside India.

According to reports based on the investigations, the network has been accused of involvement in grenade attacks, improvised explosive device incidents, petrol-bomb attacks and targeted killings. Investigators have also alleged that individuals associated with the network were involved in reconnaissance of police, defence and religious sites and in surveillance-related activities.

The August crackdown brought particular attention to the alleged use of local recruits. Investigating agencies have said that people inside India could be contacted through social media and encrypted communication platforms and then allegedly assigned tasks ranging from reconnaissance and surveillance to transporting weapons and facilitating attacks.

The government has also alleged that SBN's activities extended beyond conventional weapons trafficking, with digital communication being used to influence or recruit potential operatives. The latest UAPA notification specifically refers to the alleged radicalisation of young people and the dissemination of provocative messages through digital platforms.

Legal significance of the designation

Under the UAPA, inclusion in the First Schedule formally identifies an organisation as a terrorist organisation under Indian law. The designation provides the government with a specific legal framework for taking action against the organisation and activities associated with it.

The latest notification amends the First Schedule by inserting SBN as serial number 46. The government said the decision was based on its assessment that the network was involved in terrorism and had participated in terrorist acts in India.

The move therefore represents a formal legal step following the investigations and arrests carried out against individuals allegedly linked to the network. It also places the organisation within the statutory list of terrorist organisations maintained under the UAPA.

Investigations continue

The government action does not bring the investigations into individual suspects to an end. Cases against alleged members and associates continue under multiple laws, with authorities examining the network's alleged financing, recruitment, movement of weapons and explosives, digital communications and links with other organisations.

The August operation had already produced more than 80 FIRs and over 200 arrests in cases associated with SBN, according to the Ministry of Home Affairs. The recovery of explosives, firearms and surveillance equipment was also cited by officials as part of the evidence being examined.

The Centre's decision on September 16 now gives the investigation a formal organisational dimension under the UAPA. The Shahzad Bhatti Network has been added to the First Schedule alongside other organisations designated as terrorist groups under Indian law.

The government has maintained that the action is intended to prevent the network from recruiting individuals, moving illegal arms and explosives across borders, raising resources for terrorist activities and using digital platforms to promote violence.

The allegations against SBN and its alleged operatives remain matters for investigation and legal proceedings, with individual cases subject to the judicial process. The September 16 notification, however, formally establishes the organisation's designation as a terrorist organisation under the UAPA and marks a new legal phase in the Centre's action against the network.