In a shocking revelation, the Maharashtra Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS) nabbed 37-year-old Pune software engineer Zubair Hangargekar on October 27 for his secret links with the dreaded terror group, al-Qaeda. The ATS uncovered that Zubair was busy preaching to youth that “democracy is against Shariat.” He created and shared radical content on topics like Jihad and "Ghazwa-e-Hind," which talks about a Caliphate taking over the Indian subcontinent. Zubair was active on his own Telegram groups, chatting with young people and like-minded friends about replacing democracy with Shariat law and dreaming of a "united global Ummah" by dissolving national borders. A senior ATS officer from Pune revealed, “The secret Dars sessions were conducted in Pune, Solapur, and Thane to radicalise youth. During these sessions, he lectured them on ‘ways to commit jihad’ and the path to bring Khilafat.” Despite having a bright career as a software engineer for 15 years, Zubair drifted into extremism around 2015 after meeting known terror-linked people in Pune and Hyderabad. He holds a B.E. degree from Walchand Institute of Technology, Solapur, but his path took a dark turn. During the ATS raids in Pune’s Kondhwa area, Zubair was caught, and 18 others had their devices seized for deep forensic checks. From Zubair’s laptop and phone, police found several al-Qaeda and AQIS magazines and manuals teaching how to make IEDs, glorifying jihad and martyrdom. The magazines pushed readers to violently establish Khilafat rule over India. The ATS officer said, “He read content produced by radical preachers from the Middle East, Afghanistan, and Pakistan and studied major al-Qaeda attacks in depth, including the 9/11 attack.” Now, Zubair stands in judicial custody till November 28. This arrest sends a strong message: the ATS is watching, and spreading messages against democracy and peace in the name of religion won’t go unchecked. Stay tuned as investigations continue to unravel the full network behind this shocking case.