Kerala ISIS Kingpin Used To Fight In Debates On Facebook

Shajeer Mangalasseri Abdulla, the suspected kingpin of the Kerala module of the Islamic State, was an active member of Right Thinkers, a Facebook group that debated current issues.

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Shajeer, believed to be operating from the IS-controlled area in Afghanistan, disappeared from the group around one-and-a-half years ago. Before joining the IS, Shajeer was employed in Dubai, sources said.

¡°Shajeer was not among the admins of Right Thinkers. But his name is not seen in the social media for the past one or two years,¡° said a group member.

Right Thinkers SHAD of was formed around 2011, in protest against another group, Free Thinkers, dominated by atheists led by E A Jabbar, a rationalist from Malappuram.

¡°A few persons were angered by the ultra-rationalistic stand of the group and its vehement attack on Islam. They left the group to form Right Thinkers,¡° the source said.

It may be recalled that Jabbar topped the IS module's alleged hit-list, and he was under surveillance.

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The IS Malayalam blog, Muhajiraun, had published the profile photos of the admins of Free Thinkers, and threatened to finish them off. The term, `Jabbras', was coined by this group to insult Jabbar and his team.

Some members of the group said that Shajeer lacked the intellectual acumen or religious scholarship to create a blog like Muhajiraun, which contained authentic articles on Islam.

They expressed doubt that other group members, close to Shajeer and share IS ideology, might have helped him in creating the Malayalam propaganda material. Police also do not rule out the possibility.

For the past one year, Shajeer has been intervening in the social media discussions using fake IDs. It is sus pected that Akbar K PuW ram, Adhil AX and Yunus Salem are some of the aliases Shajeer might have used to operate his Facebook accounts.

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There was a heated discussion on IS after Popular Front of India leader P Koya wrote an article, `How many Caliphs', against the banned outfit. Shajeer was one among those who had reacted strongly against the article.

Meanwhile, the investigating agencies have extended the probe to other countries besides Afghanistan. Many of the IS sympathisers are based in the Gulf countries and efforts are on to smoke them out of their hideouts.