The Delhi Police Special Cell has arrested Shabbir Ahmed Lone, a high-ranking commander of the Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT), near the India-Bangladesh border. The operation, the result of months of meticulous intelligence gathering, disrupts a cross-border network linked to recruitment and radicalization efforts.

Lone, hailing from Kangan in Srinagar, Jammu and Kashmir, was apprehended after evading capture since fleeing India in 2019 following his earlier arrest in 2007 on arms charges. Operating from a hideout near Dhaka, he coordinated sleeper cells involving Bangladeshi nationals in India, pushing recruitment drives in cities like Delhi, Kolkata, and Tamil Nadu. The arrest was led by a team under Additional CP Pramod Kushwaha, ACP Lalit Negi, and Inspector Sunil Rajain, reporting to Police Commissioner Satish Golcha.

Lone, hailing from Kangan in Srinagar, Jammu and Kashmir, was apprehended after evading capture since fleeing India in 2019 following his earlier arrest in 2007 on arms charges. Operating from a hideout near Dhaka, he coordinated sleeper cells involving Bangladeshi nationals in India, pushing recruitment drives in cities like Delhi, Kolkata, and Tamil Nadu. The arrest was led by a team under Additional CP Pramod Kushwaha, ACP Lalit Negi, and Inspector Sunil Rajain, reporting to Police Commissioner Satish Golcha. This image from a related Delhi Police operation illustrates the intensity of such counter-terror missions, with officers securing suspects in custody.

Investigations reveal Lone's connections to LeT leaders like Hafiz Saeed and Zaki-ur-Rehman Lakhvi, with ties to recent cases such as the Metro Poster terror module bust. He allegedly visited Delhi multiple times to activate cells and radicalize locals, highlighting ISI-backed activities using Bangladesh as a staging ground. Authorities are now pursuing leads on figures like TRF chief Sheikh Sajjad Gul in Pakistan.

The capture signals heightened vigilance along the Bangladesh border amid rising terror threats from Pakistan-based outfits. It builds on prior successes, like the February 2026 dismantling of an LeT cell in Delhi involving arms and propaganda. Enhanced India-Bangladesh cooperation could further curb these networks, preventing attacks reminiscent of LeT's 2008 Mumbai assault. Police urge the public to report suspicious activities as investigations continue.