Shahzad Bhatti Network Banned as Terror Group After Pan-India Crackdown

The Union Home Ministry has designated the 'Shahzad Bhatti Network' (SBN) as a terrorist organisation under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, citing a serious threat to democratic systems, communal harmony and internal security. The outfit is the 46th to be listed under Section 35(I) of the UAPA, 1967, which empowers the Ministry to proscribe a group as a terrorist organisation.

The designation follows a nationwide counter-terror operation ahead of Independence Day in which more than 200 suspects linked to the network were detained or arrested. The name of Shahzad Bhatti, a Pakistani social-media influencer, has surfaced in several terror-related investigations in India over the past two years.

What began as an effort to build fear and influence in Punjab spread to 14 States, with young men jailed under the UAPA for carrying out his instructions. Their tasks included pasting posters glorifying Bhatti and his associates, installing CCTV cameras near critical installations with footage livestreamed into Pakistan, and making extortion calls.

Bhatti, who speaks Punjabi and posts videos on Instagram and Facebook using a filter to enhance his appearance, currently operates from the UAE. Security officials said he moved from organised crime to terror-related activity over the past year and was tapped by Pakistan's Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) because of his reach among Indians on social media. Several of his Instagram accounts, which end in '333', have been flagged by security agencies. Delhi Police had blocked 125 Instagram accounts linked to him before the pan-India raids.

Since October 2025, police have registered 15 FIRs and arrested 69 accused, two-thirds of them from Punjab and Uttar Pradesh. Those arrested were largely poorly educated and economically vulnerable individuals recruited through social media with offers of money, relocation to the Gulf, or help with personal problems.

Bhatti's criminal footprint began in Punjab and later extended to Uttar Pradesh, Haryana, Delhi, Rajasthan, Maharashtra, Uttarakhand, Karnataka, Gujarat, Bihar, Telangana, Himachal Pradesh, Jammu and Kashmir, and Kerala.

The Ministry notification listed offences registered under nine categories of law, including the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, the Information Technology Act, 2000, the Explosives Substances Act, the UAPA, the Official Secrets Act, 1923, the Immigration and Foreigners Act, 2025 and the Delhi Prevention of Defacement of Property Act, 2007. It said the SBN's objective is to draw in gullible youth and local criminals to smuggle arms, explosives and narcotics across the border.

A Uttar Pradesh police officer said Bhatti contacted young men who engaged with his posts and offered them ₹5,000 to ₹10,000 to put up posters carrying his image in public places to project him as a gangster and instil fear. Some were later recruited to throw grenades or plant explosives near critical installations. Payments, often originating from Central Asian countries, were transferred directly to bank accounts.

After assessing a recruit's willingness to take risks, Bhatti allegedly assigned more serious tasks, including installing Chinese-made CCTV cameras near railway stations, air bases and arterial roads, with footage livestreamed to Pakistan. In one instance, he allegedly sent online manuals to men in Punjab on making petrol bombs and an improvised explosive device. "In some cases, money was the motivation, while in others, religious sentiments were exploited," the officer said.