NIA arrests nine in Bengal & Kerala, claims al-Qaeda attacks foiled

The NIA headquarters in New Delhi. (Express Photo/File)

The National Investigation Agency (NIA) Saturday claimed to have foiled plans for terror strikes in various parts of the country with the arrest of nine alleged al-Qaeda operatives reportedly acting at the behest of handlers from Pakistan.

The agency arrested the nine in early morning raids at Murshidabad in West Bengal and Ernakulam in Kerala, and claimed to have recovered countrymade pistols, a rudimentary body armour, batteries, switches, firecrackers, literature on home-made IEDs and other…