Two flyers smuggle in exotic species from Bangkok, arrested at Mumbai airport
1
2
3
4
5
6
Mumbai: The Air Intelligence Unit (AIU) of Mumbai Customs on Wednesday intercepted two Indian men at Mumbai airport after they arrived from Bangkok with endangered wildlife species, including two Sumatran striped rabbits, one Waigeou spotted cuscus, three Brown basilisk lizards (one was dead), and 115 green iguanas, concealed in their baggage.
Waigeou spotted cuscus and green iguana are listed under Appendix-II of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species, making their transport strictly regulated.
The duo was arrested under relevant provisions of the Customs Act, 1962 and the Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972.
You Can Also Check:
Mumbai AQI
|
Weather in Mumbai
|
Bank Holidays in Mumbai
|
Public Holidays in Mumbai
With the help of an NGO and the animal quarantine department, the rescued animals safely secured and deported to their country of origin after due legal process, AIU officials said
Authorities are continuing their investigation to identify the broader network behind the animal trafficking.
Mumbai: The Air Intelligence Unit (AIU) of Mumbai Customs on Wednesday intercepted two Indian men at Mumbai airport after they arrived from Bangkok with endangered wildlife species, including two Sumatran striped rabbits, one Waigeou spotted cuscus, three Brown basilisk lizards (one was dead), and 115 green iguanas, concealed in their baggage.
Waigeou spotted cuscus and green iguana are listed under Appendix-II of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species, making their transport strictly regulated.
by Taboola
by Taboola
Sponsored Links
Sponsored Links
Promoted Links
Promoted Links
You May Like
Turn everyday drives into standout moments.
Toyota Glanza
Learn More
Undo
The duo was arrested under relevant provisions of the Customs Act, 1962 and the Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972.
With the help of an NGO and the animal quarantine department, the rescued animals safely secured and deported to their country of origin after due legal process, AIU officials said
Authorities are continuing their investigation to identify the broader network behind the animal trafficking.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
India Today
33 minutes ago
- India Today
Vendetta Republic: Minorities, women, justice under siege in Yunus's Bangladesh
The brazen rape and public humiliation of a married Hindu woman in Bangladesh's Cumilla region on Thursday night has once again brought into sharp focus how insecure minorities are in the nation. The victim, a mother of two, whose husband works abroad, had gone to visit her parents when a neighbour broke into the house and raped her at others joined the rapist, a man called Mohammed Fazar Ali, they filmed the act and threatened to kill the woman and circulate the video on social media if she raised an alarm or complained to the police. But neighbours, both Hindus and Muslims, alerted by her cries for help, chased the rapist and his accomplices police have already arrested five, including Fazar Ali. But by then, however, a 50-second video of the woman, naked and desperately fighting the rapist, had made it to social media. Hopes of justice are slim as the victim is under pressure to withdraw the case - the accused is a top local leader of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party. This incident came within a few days of a brutal attack on a Hindu barber, Paresh Chandra Shil, in the northern district of Lalmonirhat, by a mob led by a local Imam who alleged he had made blasphemous remarks about Prophet Muhammad. The local police, instead of protecting the victim, helped the Imam by booking 69-year-old Shil for hurting religious sentiments, who insists he made no remarks against the in the same week, authorities demolished a Durga temple in Dhaka's Khilkhet, on the grounds that it had been constructed on land belonging to the Bangladesh Railways. Indian protests against the demolition of the temple sparked strong reactions from the Muhammad Yunus-led interim insecureadvertisementThese incidents do point to a growing sense of acute insecurity amongst religious minorities. After the brutal assassination of Bangladesh Puja Udjapan Committee leader Bhabesh Chandra Roy in April, India had pointed to the 'systematic persecution' of minorities and appealed for a course correction. But Chinmoy Krishna Das, the ISKCON monk who first organised protests by Hindus in Bangladesh, remains in jail, unable to secure bail in the sedition case he's been implicated in. Calls for his release have fallen on deaf ears. Attacks on Buddhists and Hindus in Chittagong Hill Tracts have also multiplied since the interim government took charge last the Yunus administration is in persistent denial, with the chief advisor claiming that those Hindus attacked were victims of popular resentment because they were closely identified with the ousted Awami League. That is a blatant falsehood because neither the Cumilla woman nor Paresh Shil was affiliated with any violenceYunus presides over the most lawless period of contemporary Bangladesh. In the week that saw the brutal rape of the Hindu woman in Cumilla, two other cases of rape were reported from elsewhere in the men were sent to jail in Mymensingh for raping a 13-year-old girl. Local religious influentials tried to hush up the case by arbitration, but the police moved in after the girl's father filed a case alleging rape. The same week, the director of a local madrassa, Shakhawat Ullah, was arrested for the attempted rape of a 12-year-old girl in the female dormitory of the against women seem to be on the rise at a time when Islamist radicals, who strongly back the Yunus regime, have taken to the streets to oppose women's rights. They are calling for trashing a Women's Reform Commission report that recommended equal rights for women in matters of inheritance, divorce, property, and marriage. In a protest rally, Islamist radicals went through the obscene symbolic act of stripping a woman's effigy and beating it with radicals say the commission's report goes against 'Islamic values'. Yunus, who set up the commission, has conveniently gone quiet, frustrating activists who headed the clerics have forcibly stopped women from playing football in many parts of the country, upsetting national team players who won the South Asian championship for Bangladesh just a year Yunus took charge, Bangladesh has witnessed a frightening rise in 'mob justice'. These mobs, whipped into frenzy by Islamist radicals or Yunus's student-youth brigade, have stormed stores to prevent actresses from inaugurating them or attacked leading personalities associated with the Sheikh Hasina regime. Recently, a mob attacked the residence of former Chief Election Commissioner KM Nurul Huda and assaulted (and garlanded) him with shoes. Later, police arrested Huda in a case filed by the BNP over electoral irregularities. The mob got away justice' was also the demolition of 32, Dhanmondi in Dhaka, the house of Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, who led Bangladesh to independence in 1971. For two days, the army and police stood by as mobs of religious radicals and Yunus's youth brigade pulled down the museum installed in the historic building. One such student leader (now in Yunus's advisory council), Asif Mahmud Bhuiyan, was recently let off at the Dhaka airport after bullet magazines were found in his luggage while he was travelling to Morocco via Turkey. The incident was widely reported in the normally muzzled Bangladesh League under attackYunus is desperately trying to undermine the legacy of Mujibur Rahman and the 1971 independence war he spearheaded, as is evident from his government's decision to remove Rahman's picture from all currency notes. Replacing them with new currency has cost Bangladesh billions, but Yunus seems than 100 former ministers and senior leaders of the Awami League and tens of thousands of party activists are in jail, mostly on trumped-up charges. More than 20 Awami League leaders have died in jail under mysterious circumstances, and even lawyers representing Awami League members in cases have been jailed. All activities of the Awami League have been declared Yunus administration suspects the Awami League is trying to hit the ground under the cover of protesting against minority persecution and appears determined to prevent it. Islamist parties have always fumed at the minority support base of the Awami League, which gives the party a clear edge in one-fifth of the country's parliament seats. Islamist parties have always played the communal card and branded the Awami League 'a stooge of India', a card that Yunus is more than willing to use to keep the Awami League at bay and continue in power without having to face Nobel laureate's pitch for the restoration of democracy is ringing increasingly hollow amidst rising 'mob justice' and his reluctance to announce a definite roadmap for elections.(Subir Bhaumik is a former BBC and Reuters correspondent and author who has worked in Bangladesh as a senior editor with Ends(Views expressed in this opinion piece are those of the author)Tune InMust Watch
News18
40 minutes ago
- News18
From Kerala To Khorasan: CNN-News18 Uncovers India's Hidden ISIS Recruitment Network
Authorities estimate 1,500-2,200 foreign fighters are currently embedded in ISKP ranks in Afghanistan, with Indians being prioritised for operations in so-called 'Hind Province' A growing jihadi network operating out of Kerala, serving as a silent but dangerous conduit funnelling radicalised Indian youth into the ranks of ISIS-Khorasan (ISKP) in Afghanistan, has come to the fore during an investigation by CNN-News18. According to top intelligence sources, radical elements in Kerala have turned the state into a key ideological processing center for ISIS recruitment, targeting vulnerable individuals—particularly economically disadvantaged Dalit minors—with promises of dignity, financial stability, and a cause. These recruits are initially drawn in through Gulf-funded Salafi institutions like Peace International School and later indoctrinated in covert 'safe houses" across Kerala, often operated by banned outfits such as the Popular Front of India (PFI) and the Social Democratic Party of India (SDPI). The process is systematic. Once isolated, recruits are subjected to an intense ideological reprogramming process that lasts between 3 to 6 months. Salafi-Wahhabi texts are used to frame the Hindu caste system as oppressive, and jihad is promoted as a form of liberation. Recruits are stripped of cultural identity, renamed, and trained in encrypted communication, crypto-transactions via Monero, and basic weapons handling. Most recruits travel from Kochi or Trivandrum airports using forged documents, often via Dubai or Istanbul, before reaching ISIS-controlled territories in Nangarhar or Kunar provinces in Afghanistan. Some groups, like the infamous 2016 Kasaragod Module, used land routes through Sri Lanka and Iran. Authorities estimate that between 1,500 and 2,200 foreign fighters are currently embedded in ISKP ranks in Afghanistan, with Indians being prioritised for operations in the so-called 'Hind Province". CNN-News18's findings also reveal that children of Kerala-origin jihadis are being raised in Afghanistan to become the next generation of ISIS fighters. One such case is that of Nimisha Fathima, a Hindu woman from Palakkad who converted to Islam, adopted the name Fathima Isa, and travelled to Afghanistan with her husband. While her husband was later killed in 2017, their daughter—born in Nangarhar—is reportedly being trained by ISKP operatives. In another case, Sonia Sebastian, an engineer from Ernakulam who converted to Islam and joined ISIS, was killed in a US drone strike in 2019. She was indoctrinated in a PFI-linked safe house in Aluva before fleeing to Afghanistan. Gulf-Kerala Nexus Fuels Radicalisation With over two million Keralites living in Gulf countries, intelligence officials point to a well-oiled radical funding pipeline. Radical mosques and madrasas in Kerala are being financed by Gulf-based donors, allowing the network to operate seamlessly and expand across state lines. The Uttar Pradesh Police have confirmed that Kerala-based radical groups are targeting over 50 Dalit minors annually for trafficking. Investigations linked to recent arrests in Prayagraj have revealed similar patterns, with minors being lured through offers of education and jobs, before being transported out of the country. Past Precedents and Warnings Ignored The threat is not new. The 2016 Kasaragod module saw 21 individuals, including women and children, radicalised in Padanna madrasas and trafficked to Afghanistan. Of those, 16 were killed in airstrikes between 2016 and 2019, and five children were eventually repatriated. Despite repeated warnings from intelligence agencies, the network continues to evolve, using forged documents, encrypted apps like Telegram, and crypto assets to avoid detection. National Security Challenge Security agencies now consider the Kerala-Afghanistan pipeline one of the most urgent jihadi threats to India. Sources say ISKP views Indian recruits as particularly valuable for propaganda and operations in South Asia, especially as regional instability grows. With the resurgence of ISKP activity in Afghanistan and new waves of radicalisation emerging from within India, officials warn that unless the domestic nodes of this transnational terror pipeline are dismantled, more Indian lives could be lost in a war far from home—but with roots disturbingly close. tags : Afghanistan Islamic State Khorasan Province kerala Popular Front of India Social Democratic Party of India (SDPI) Location : Kerala, India, India First Published: July 01, 2025, 10:31 IST News india From Kerala To Khorasan: CNN-News18 Uncovers India's Hidden ISIS Recruitment Network | Exclusive
NDTV
an hour ago
- NDTV
Indian-Origin Man Gets Jai, 3 Cane Strokes For Rioting In Singapore
Singapore: An Indian origin man has been sentenced to two years and three months in jail, and three strokes of the cane, after pleading guilty to a rioting charge in which another man was killed at a nightspot in 2023. Kavind Raj Kannan, 25, and 10 other men -- referred to in court documents as the 'rioting group' -- had ganged up against Mohammad Isrrat Mohd Ismail, then 29, at the Concorde Hotel in the wee hours of August 20, 2023, The Straits Times reported on Monday. According to court documents, Isrrat died after he was repeatedly stabbed with a knife by Asvain Pachan Pillai Sukumaran, another Indian origin gang member who was part of the rioting group. Asvain, then 30, has been charged with murder and his case is pending. Other members of the gang have been dealt with jail terms and caning in court. Defence lawyers pleaded for Kavind to be given up to two years and two months' jail with caning. The lawyers said: '(Isrrat) himself began the fracas with vulgarities being hurled at the accused's group."
