Bangladesh terror groups HuJI and JMB are using proxy outfits to target India, intelligence agencies warn. Illegal migrants, home-grown fronts, and cross-border terror strategies raise serious security concerns across northeastern, eastern, and southern Indian states.
Indian intelligence agencies have raised serious concerns over a strategic shift adopted by Bangladesh-based terrorist organisations Harkat-ul-Jihad Islami (HuJI) and Jamaat-ul-Mujahideen Bangladesh (JMB), warning that both outfits are increasingly relying on proxy groups to carry out operations inside India. Officials say this method is designed to provide Bangladesh with plausible deniability while expanding terror networks across Indian states.
According to intelligence inputs, HuJI and JMB are actively reviving dormant modules and creating new front organisations that operate under different names. These proxy outfits, largely comprising Indian nationals and illegal migrants from Bangladesh, are meant to appear as home-grown extremist groups, thereby complicating investigations and delaying attribution to the parent terror organisations.
This strategy mirrors tactics long used by Pakistan-based terror groups such as Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) and Jaish-e-Mohammad (JeM). Lashkar-e-Taiba has frequently carried out attacks in Jammu and Kashmir using proxies like The Resistance Front, while Jaish-e-Mohammad operates through front organisations such as the People’s Anti-Fascist Front (PAAF) and Kashmir Tigers. Intelligence officials say HuJI and JMB are now replicating this model in India with increasing sophistication.
An Intelligence Bureau official noted that both Bangladesh-based groups are actively encouraging their Indian modules to function under distinct aliases to evade security surveillance. “We are seeing a clear trend where HuJI and JMB operatives are deliberately masking their identity by using proxy names. This delays investigations and makes it harder to trace attacks back to the original organisations,” the official said.
The threat is particularly acute in India’s northeastern states and border regions. Recently, Assam and Tripura Police, working jointly with central agencies, dismantled a terror module operating under the name Imam Mahamude Kafila (IMK). Investigations revealed that IMK is a proxy outfit of the Jamaat-ul-Mujahideen Bangladesh. Officials confirmed that while the module had existed earlier, it was reactivated recently with the specific aim of launching attacks in India.
Apart from IMK, JMB is also operating through other India-based affiliates, including Jamaat-ul-Mujahideen India and Jamaat-ul-Mujahideen Hindustan. These groups function independently on the surface but remain ideologically and operationally aligned with the Bangladesh-based leadership.
HuJI, too, has accelerated efforts to activate its proxy networks ahead of politically sensitive periods, including upcoming elections in eastern India. Intelligence agencies believe that West Bengal, due to its geographical proximity and demographic vulnerabilities, remains a key target area. In the past, HuJI operated alongside the Indian Mujahideen and has been linked to several proxy outfits such as Harkat-ul-Ansar and the Asif Reza Commando Force (ARCF).
The ARCF had claimed responsibility for the 2002 attack on the American Centre in Kolkata, highlighting the long-standing operational presence of HuJI-linked proxies in India. Officials warn that similar groups are now being revived with renewed intent.
Security agencies have also flagged the growing involvement of illegal migrants in these proxy organisations. Both HuJI and JMB are allegedly attempting to recruit undocumented migrants who enter India through porous borders. The objective, officials say, is to create sleeper cells across multiple regions, including the northeast, West Bengal, and southern India.
“The strategy is to build decentralised modules that can operate independently but receive ideological direction from across the border,” a senior officer explained. “This allows terror groups to strike in different parts of the country without exposing the main leadership.”
Intelligence sources further revealed that this proxy-based model was encouraged by Pakistan’s Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI), which has long advised militant groups to operate through multiple fronts. The aim is to ensure that no direct trail leads back to Bangladesh in the event of an attack, thereby shielding the country from international scrutiny.
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Pakistan has historically used similar tactics to deflect blame and avoid sanctions from global watchdogs such as the Financial Action Task Force (FATF). Indian agencies believe Bangladesh-based groups are now adopting the same approach to prevent diplomatic and economic consequences.
Another senior intelligence official said that the speed and scale of these developments indicate an urgency to execute major terror operations inside India. “The activation of multiple proxies simultaneously suggests that these groups are preparing for something significant,” the official warned.
In response, security agencies across India, particularly in states bordering Bangladesh, have been placed on high alert. Surveillance along the international border has been intensified, and efforts are underway to track suspicious movements within the country.
Authorities are also focusing on curbing illegal immigration routes, which officials say are being exploited not only for infiltration but also for recruitment into extremist networks. The combination of proxy outfits, illegal migration, and decentralised terror modules poses a complex challenge for Indian security agencies, which are now racing against time to dismantle these networks before they can strike.
