In a massive operation, security agencies have mounted surveillance on as many as 350 women employees in the critical security verticals of multinational companies, mostly American in origin. Sources privy to the development said these women, handling sensitive roles in the security architecture of multinational companies, are being targeted by international terror outfits like ISIS with the ulterior motive of exploiting them for future sinister plots.
A banned terror outfit from Kerala has reached out to these women under the guise of similar jobs or being employed by such companies. They have also taken accommodations in proximity to their residences, the sources said. The Kerala-based terror group, which subsequently shifted its headquarters to Shaheen Bagh in the national capital over a decade ago, has planted its handlers to tap female employees who might be oblivious to the insidious terror tactic.
ISIS is estimated to have targeted the Indian diaspora in West Asia, who in turn identified gullible women professionals back home to enlist them for their insidious agenda. These women could be used to cause major operational disruptions in the MNCs, potentially affecting consumer interests and damaging India’s brand image.
Through surveillance, the agencies aim to unravel the larger network of terror groups and their expansive footprint to secure national interests, the sources said. While ISIS has no intention of holding territory in India, they aim to recruit cadres to further the “Jihadi” agenda in the outfit’s theaters of influence. Without divulging specifics, a source in the Delhi police said, “We do keep a watch on such suspects through technical and human means when we get specific leads.”
