Hyderabad: The five terror suspects arrested by the National Investigation Agency in Hyderabad were on Thursday remanded to 14 days judicial custody and sent to Charapally Central Jail.

The five members of the terror module appeared on Wednesday before the NIA Special Court at Nampally, amid tight security, where the judge remanded them to the judicial custody.

Later the NIA moved another petition before the court seeking their custody for further questioning, which will be taken up for hearing on Friday.

Sources said the NIA wants to shift them to New Delhi on transit warrant for further questioning in view of the serious nature of the case.

The NIA smashed the militant ring, believed to be in touch with Daesh, with the arrest of the five suspects on Wednesday.

They include Mohammad Ebrahim Yazdani (30), Habeeb Mohammad (32), Mohammad Ilyas Yazdani (24), Abdullah Bin Ahmad Al Amoodi alias Fahad (31) and Muzaffar Hussain Rizwan (29).

The NIA said it raided and searched ten houses in different parts of Hyderabad during the operation and picked up 11 people for questioning.

While five were later formally arrested on the charges of waging war against the government and possessing arms illegally, the other six youths were let off late in the night as nothing incriminating was found against them

In a press release the NIA said that a case was registered against them on credible information that some youth hailing from Hyderabad and their accomplices had entered in to a criminal conspiracy to wage war against the government of India by collecting weapons and explosive materials to commit terrorist acts.

Though the earlier reports had said that they were in touch with Daesh, the press release did not name any organisation.

“During preliminary examination it has been revealed that the terrorist gang was preparing IEDs for commission of terrorist acts and were being guided by an online handler suspected to be based in Iraq/Syria. Further investigation is being continued”.

NIA said that the group was planning to target public places, including religious sites, sensitive government buildings in various parts of the country. During the searches, conducted with the assistance of the Hyderabad City Police, two 9mm semi automatic pistols with ammunition, an air gun with telescopic sight, chemicals used for making explosives, Rs1.5 million (Dh81,583), six laptops and 40 mobile phones with 32 SIM cards were seized from their houses.

The chemicals found in their possession include suspected Urea/ammonium nitrate powder, and their mixture with sugar, bottles containing acid, Acetone, Hydrogen Peroxide. The raiding teams also recovered target boards meant for shooting practice.

NIA sources said that the group headed by Ibraheem Yazdani, a software engineer was under watch for the last three months and it was decided to take action on Wednesday as the group was about to carry out the attacks in the city in the next few days.

Sources said that the IT corridor housing several foreign companies and a Mall in Madhapur area, a religious place in the old city and a government building were among their possible targets.

A kiosk selling betel leaf near historic monument Charminar was the point of contact of the group members who had come in touch through social media, the sources said.

The developments created a stir in the city, which was drowned in Ramadan festivities.

The police have now tightened the security all over the city and additional police pickets have been deployed and the vehicles were being searched.

Cyberabad West Police Commissioner Naveen Chand said that the security in his jurisdiction was tightened as the IT corridor was reportedly on the radar of the terror module.

The security was also beefed up at the Rajiv Gandhi International Airport in Shamshabad and visitors’ entry was banned. “We have also cancelled all the passes unti July 6,” an official said.