Ahmedabad: A special National Investigation Agency (NIA) court has refused to grant regular bail to Shama Parveen Ansari, 30, who was arrested in a case linked to alleged online terror propaganda of al‑Qaida in the Indian Subcontinent (AQIS).In July last year, Gujarat ATS arrested Ansari from Bengaluru for allegedly spreading al-Qaida propaganda through social media.She is accused of operating accounts such as ‘strangers_nation02’ on Instagram and Facebook, disseminating radical content to incite jihad and an armed revolt against Indian govt.Ansari is accused of spreading the ‘Ghazwa-e-Hind’ narrative and circulating speeches of AQIS leaders.Before her arrest, ATS arrested four men from Ahmedabad, Modasa, Delhi, and Noida for promoting similar content. They were booked under Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA).In Oct 2025, NIA took over the probe.Seeking bail, Ansari’s counsel submitted that the allegations were limited to operating social media accounts and sharing content. The counsel said there was no overt terrorist act, no recovery of weapons from her, and no evidence of training, funding, recruitment, or operational planning.Ideological material alone cannot justify continued detention, the counsel said.NIA opposed the bail plea, citing the invocation of UAPA and submitted that her Instagram handle has over 10,000 followers. NIA said that she was part of extremist digital groups and maintained regular contact with a Pakistani operative identified as Sumer Ali.Special judge M P Purohit noted that Ansari has been charge-sheeted and the court was to frame charges in the case.The judge said there is documentary, technical, and oral evidence against her.Rejecting the bail plea, the court cited a Supreme Court order and said, “…such…discretion is available with the Hon’ble Constitutional Courts and not with the trial courts.”
