5 of 15 Muslims missing from Kerala had converted to Islam recently

July 10, 2016

Kasaragod, Jul 10: Five of the 15 missing Muslims from Kerala who are feared to have joined the Islamic State (IS) were Hindus and Christians who had converted to Islam about a year ago.

1couple

Fathima Nimisha who went missing with her husband Eesa who were feared to have joined in IS terror group

Meanwhile, intelligence sources said one of those missing was in Afghanistan, while another was hiding in India.

Among the five married couples who are missing, two were earlier Hindus or Christians.

— Nimisha, alias Fathima, from a Hindu family in Thiruvananthapuram, converted to Islam while studying at a dental college in Kasaragod district in November last year.

— Merlin, alias Mariyam, from Kochi was a Christian who converted to Islam while working with IBM in Mumbai last year.

— Nimisha and Merlin were married to two brothers, Issa and Yahiya, from Palakkad who had both converted from Christianity to Islam. Their father, Vincent, filed a missing person's complaint on Saturday.

— Sonia, alias Ayisha, an engineering graduate — who is missing with her husband Abdul Rasheed, an engineer, and their two-year-old daughter Sara — was a Christian who converted to Islam about a year ago.

Nimisha's mother, Bindu, said her daughter first went missing from her college last November. After she filed a police complaint, Nimisha and Issa appeared before a local court. “I was shocked to see her covering her face. I was told that she had been converted to Islam by some Mujahideen group,'' she said.

Nimisha's family moved a habeas corpus petition in the high court in November. But the court allowed her to live with Issa. “I asked my daughter how she met Issa as he was not her classmate or friend. I was told that her seniors in college arranged the match, that they wanted a converted youth to marry a converted girl. They had become friends just four days before they started living together,'' she said.

At first, Nimisha did not contact her family. But she later got in touch, and even visited her mother in the second week of May. “After spending a few hours with the family, she left for Palakkad. Later, I was told that they were going to Sri Lanka to explore some business opportunities. I pleaded with Issa not to go there with my pregnant daughter, but he refused to listen. After reaching Sri Lanka, she sent me WhatsApp messages,'' said Bindu.

Jacob, the father of another missing woman, Merlin, said his daughter and Yahiya had studied together in a school in Kochi. “After graduation, my daughter got a job with IBM in Mumbai. During college, she was not in touch with Yahiya, who was then a Christian. Last year, after converting to Islam, he managed to track down her in Mumbai and converted her also,'' he said.

He said Merlin told him that they were going to Sri Lanka to address religious gatherings. “We discouraged them from going to Lanka. She was a brilliant girl. We thought she would not fall into any trap. We had warned her about this relationship. She was brainwashed. For the last three weeks, we have received no information about her,'' he said.

Sonia, whose family is from Vyttila in Kochi, was born in Bahrain, where her parents were employed. She came to Kerala for her engineering studies, during which she met Abdul Rashid, a resident of Kasaragod.

According to sources, Sonia was not in touch with her family after she converted to Islam. Intelligence sources said Sonia had become a preacher, while Rashid is suspected to be the local organiser of the missing group from Kasaragod.

Meanwhile, at Padanna in Kasaragod, two brothers, Dr Ijas and Shihab, an engineer, and their wives are among those missing. Their father, Abdul Rahim, told the media that if they had joined the Islamic State he would “consider them as dead”.

Two other families in Kasaragod also filed missing complaints after their sons, who were working in Qatar and Abu Dhabi, failed to reach home. Police said the youths had called up their families on June 9, informing them that would reach home in a week. “The families expected that they would come for Eid last week. The reports about missing men made them worried. Hence, they filed complaints today,'' said police sources.

Comments

Rajesh Sequira
 - 
Wednesday, 13 Jul 2016

The plot thickens.....

Maruthi
 - 
Monday, 11 Jul 2016

ALL is now understood.........................................................................BJP= high rise in scams and problems . violence and trouble in cabinet reshuffling.......Dr.Zakir Naik issue (which was unnecessary link)

in KERALA people are more attracted to ISLAM.......So ISIS issue ...that too New Muslims

Ha Ha ....

THINKERS
 - 
Monday, 11 Jul 2016

Dear Yogesh,
Study ISLAM, you will understand the media twist... Dont live as per media instruction ... sometimes verify and use your intellect.

Also Ponder on NA TASYA PRATIMA ASTI>..

abdullah
 - 
Monday, 11 Jul 2016

It clearly understood that RSS people with the help of Israel making all these controversies to avoid people from converting to Islam.

True commentator
 - 
Monday, 11 Jul 2016

Dear Yogesh,
There are thousand of people from both the sex are converting to Islam, after they fully study it.
Then these highly educated people really work as propagators than the initially borned Muslims.

You should compare how many of them have joined IS or became terrorists. In contrary those people worked as the peace propagators than anybody.

So your addressing of these 15 Keralite have not studied Islam well.
Unfortunately the young brain have been mislead to join IS which is not at all portraying ISLAMIC values. In contrary IS is the enemy of Islam and enemy of all peace loving community.

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News Network
December 16,2025

Mangaluru, Dec 16: The Mangaluru City police have significantly escalated their campaign against drug trafficking, arresting 25 individuals and booking 12 cases under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act between November 30 and December 13. The crackdown resulted in the seizure of a substantial quantity of illicit substances, including 685.6 grams of MDMA and 1.5 kg of ganja.

The success of this recent drive has been significantly boosted by the city’s innovative, QR code-based anonymous reporting system.

"The anonymous reporting system has received an encouraging response. Several recent arrests were made based on inputs received through this system, helping police tighten the noose around drug peddlers," said the City Police Commissioner.

The latest arrests contribute to a robust year-to-date record, underscoring the police's relentless commitment to combating the drug menace.

Up to December 14 this year, the police have registered a total of 107 cases of drug peddling, leading to the arrest of 219 peddlers. Furthermore, they have booked 562 cases of drug consumption, resulting in the arrest of 671 individuals.

The scale of the seizure for the year reflects the magnitude of the problem being tackled: police have seized 320.6 kg of ganja worth ₹88.7 lakh and 1.4 kg of MDMA valued at ₹1.2 crore. Other significant seizures include hydro-weed ganja worth ₹94.7 lakh and cocaine worth ₹1.9 lakh, among others.

The Commissioner emphasized a policy of rigorous enforcement: "We ensure that peddlers are caught red-handed so that they cannot later dispute the case or claim innocence."

To counter the rising trend of substance abuse among youth, the Mangaluru City police have rolled out uniform guidelines for random drug testing across educational institutions.

As part of the drive, tests were conducted in approximately 100 institutions, screening an estimated 5,500 to 6,000 students in the first phase. 20 students tested positive for drug consumption during the initial screening.

Students who tested positive have been provided counselling and are scheduled for re-testing in the second quarter. The testing will also be expanded to students not covered in the first phase. In a move to ensure strict implementation, police personnel were deployed in mufti in some institutions. Reiterating a zero-tolerance stance, the Commissioner confirmed that random testing will continue, and colleges have also been instructed to conduct drug tests at the time of admission to deter substance abuse from an early stage.

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News Network
December 7,2025

Mangaluru, Dec 7: A 34-year-old fruit and vegetable trader in Mangaluru has reportedly lost ₹33.1 lakh after falling victim to an online investment scam run through a fake mobile app.

Police said the scam began in September, when the victim received a link on Facebook. Clicking it connected him to a WhatsApp number, where an unidentified person introduced a high-return investment scheme and instructed him to download an app.

To build trust, the fraudster asked him to invest ₹30,000 on September 24. The trader soon received ₹34,000 as “profit,” convincing him the scheme was genuine. Over the next two months, he transferred money in multiple instalments via Google Pay and IMPS to different scanner codes and bank accounts shared by the scammers. Between September 24 and December 3, he ended up sending a total of ₹33.1 lakh.

When he later requested a refund of his investment and promised returns, the scammers demanded additional payments, claiming he needed to pay a “service tax” first. Even after he paid a small amount, no money was returned, and the scammers continued pressuring him for more.

A case has been registered at the CEN Crime Police Station.

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News Network
December 15,2025

Mangaluru, Dec 15: Air India Express has announced that it will resume direct flight services between Mangaluru and Muscat from March 2026, restoring an important international air link for passengers from the coastal region.

Airport authorities said the service will operate twice a week—on Sundays and Tuesdays—from March 1. The initial flights are scheduled on March 3, 8 and 10, followed by March 15 and 17, with the same operating pattern to continue thereafter. The flight duration is approximately three hours and 25 minutes.

The Mangaluru–Muscat route was earlier operated under the 2025 summer schedule, with services beginning on July 14. At that time, Air India Express had operated four flights a week before suspending the service.

Officials said the summer schedule will come into effect from March 29, after which changes in flight timings and departure schedules from Mangaluru are expected. Passengers have been advised to check the latest schedules while planning their travel.

The resumption of direct flights to Muscat is expected to significantly benefit expatriates, business travellers and others, further strengthening Mangaluru’s air connectivity with the Gulf region.

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