Delhi Police bust alleged ISIS module, arrest five in multi-state raids
New Delhi: In a major counter-terror operation, the Delhi Police Special Cell, in coordination with central agencies, has busted an alleged ISIS-linked terror module and arrested five suspects during simultaneous raids across multiple states.
The raids were conducted in Delhi, Mumbai, Madhya Pradesh, Hyderabad, and Jharkhand. Two of the accused, identified as Aftab Qureshi and Sufiyan Khan, were apprehended in the national capital.
According to media reports, Qureshi, a resident of Nevalifata, Hajimalag Road in Kalyan (East), and Khan, from Mumbra, were under surveillance for alleged links to ISIS radicalisation networks. Searches at their residences in Kalyan and Mumbra led to the recovery of digital devices and other incriminating materials.
Separate searches in Delhi allegedly yielded weapons and components for improvised explosive devices (IEDs). Officials said both men had recently shifted to the capital on instructions from an alleged ISIS handler.
In Ranchi, another accused, identified as Danish, was arrested after chemicals and raw materials allegedly used for assembling explosives were found in his possession. Investigators believe he was actively preparing IEDs for an imminent attack.
Authorities suspect the module was in the advanced stages of plotting a major terror strike in India, with plans to flee abroad following its execution.
In a related operation, the National Investigation Agency (NIA) carried out searches at 21 locations across Maharashtra, Bihar, Uttar Pradesh, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, and Jammu & Kashmir in connection with an alleged ISIS-linked conspiracy.
The NIA recovered digital devices, mobile phones, laptops, and documents believed to contain vital leads on the network. A 35-year-old man from Mumbai’s Kurla area was briefly detained for questioning over his alleged online activities, which reportedly included following ISIS-linked social media accounts.
Though later released, his devices remain under forensic scrutiny. Officials said the ongoing probe aims to expose the broader web of radicalisation and support for the alleged terror network within India.
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Single higher education regulator bill tabled in LS; Oppn flags ‘centralisation,' JPC likely
New Delhi: A bill to set up a 13-member body to regulate institutions of higher education was introduced in the Lok Sabha on Monday.
Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan introduced the Viksit Bharat Shiksha Adhishthan Bill, which seeks to establish an overarching higher education commission along with three councils for regulation, accreditation, and ensuring academic standards for universities and higher education institutions in India.
Meanwhile, the move drew strong opposition, with members warning that it could weaken institutional autonomy and result in excessive centralisation of higher education in India.
The Viksit Bharat Shiksha Adhishthan Bill, 2025, earlier known as the Higher Education Council of India (HECI) Bill, has been introduced in line with the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020.
The proposed legislation seeks to merge three existing regulatory bodies, the University Grants Commission (UGC), the All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE), and the National Council for Teacher Education (NCTE), into a single unified body called the Viksit Bharat Shiksha Adhishthan.
At present, the UGC regulates non-technical higher education institutions, the AICTE oversees technical education, and the NCTE governs teacher education in India.
Under the proposed framework, the new commission will function through three separate councils responsible for regulation, accreditation, and the maintenance of academic standards across universities and higher education institutions in the country.
According to the Bill, the present challenges faced by higher educational institutions due to the multiplicity of regulators having non-harmonised regulatory approval protocols will be done away with.
The higher education commission, which will be headed by a chairperson appointed by the President of India, will cover all central universities and colleges under it, institutes of national importance functioning under the administrative purview of the Ministry of Education, including IITs, NITs, IISc, IISERs, IIMs, and IIITs.
At present, IITs and IIMs are not regulated by the University Grants Commission (UGC).
Government to refer bill to JPC; Oppn slams it
The government has expressed its willingness to refer it to a joint committee after several members of the Lok Sabha expressed strong opposition to the Bill, stating that they were not given time to study its provisions.
Responding to the opposition, Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju said the government intends to refer the Bill to a Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) for detailed examination.
Congress Lok Sabha MP Manish Tewari warned that the Bill could result in “excessive centralisation” of higher education. He argued that the proposed law violates the constitutional division of legislative powers between the Union and the states.
According to him, the Bill goes beyond setting academic standards and intrudes into areas such as administration, affiliation, and the establishment and closure of university campuses. These matters, he said, fall under Entry 25 of the Concurrent List and Entry 32 of the State List, which cover the incorporation and regulation of state universities.
Tewari further stated that the Bill suffers from “excessive delegation of legislative power” to the proposed commission. He pointed out that crucial aspects such as accreditation frameworks, degree-granting powers, penalties, institutional autonomy, and even the supersession of institutions are left to be decided through rules, regulations, and executive directions. He argued that this amounts to a violation of established constitutional principles governing delegated legislation.
Under the Bill, the regulatory council will have the power to impose heavy penalties on higher education institutions for violating provisions of the Act or related rules. Penalties range from ₹10 lakh to ₹75 lakh for repeated violations, while establishing an institution without approval from the commission or the state government could attract a fine of up to ₹2 crore.
Concerns were also raised by members from southern states over the Hindi nomenclature of the Bill. N.K. Premachandran, an MP from the Revolutionary Socialist Party representing Kollam in Kerala, said even the name of the Bill was difficult to pronounce.
He pointed out that under Article 348 of the Constitution, the text of any Bill introduced in Parliament must be in English unless Parliament decides otherwise.
DMK MP T.M. Selvaganapathy also criticised the government for naming laws and schemes only in Hindi. He said the Constitution clearly mandates that the nomenclature of a Bill should be in English so that citizens across the country can understand its intent.
Congress MP S. Jothimani from Tamil Nadu’s Karur constituency described the Bill as another attempt to impose Hindi and termed it “an attack on federalism.”
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