A special National Investigation Agency (NIA) court in Chennai has convicted and sentenced a member of the terror outfit Hizb-Ut-Tahrir (HuT) to five years of rigorous imprisonment for promoting the divisive and violent ideology of the proscribed organisation.

According to an official statement issued on Tuesday, Abdullah alias Saravana Kumar has also been fined Rs 10,000 for offences under various sections of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act.

In its verdict pronounced on Monday, the court found Kumar guilty of advising or inciting others for the commission of an unlawful activity, the NIA statement said.

NIA investigations revealed that the accused attempted to associate himself with the proscribed organisation with the intent of furthering its nefarious activities.

He had also sought support for the HuT, which seeks to establish a caliphate by overthrowing democratically elected governments such as in India, the probe agency said.

As part of this agenda, the accused had uploaded posts on his Facebook account -- 'Abdullah ibn Subramanian' -- on two occasions in 2021, with the explicit objective of disrupting the sovereignty and territorial integrity of India, the statement said.

He had striven to promote disaffection towards the Indian government and had induced others to commit an offence against the state or public tranquillity with the intention to commit an unlawful activity, according to the NIA investigations.

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