The NIA on Thursday carried out searches across Tamil Nadu as part of its probe into an alleged plot to kill Hindu activists in Coimbatore.

The agency said searches were carried out in Coimbatore, Sivaganga, Tiruchirapally, Nagapattinam and Tuticorin districts, where electronic gadgets and documents were seized. The agency conducted searches at six locations in these districts as part of its investigation into the Islamic State (IS)-Coimbatore case, according to an NIA spokesperson.

“The case pertains to the criminal conspiracy hatched by six chargesheeted accused persons and their associates with the intention of furthering the objectives of the ISIS/Daish (other names of the IS) by targeting certain Hindu activists in Coimbatore,” the spokesperson said.

Some of the accused persons arrested by the state police in September 2018 and chargesheeted by the NIA in February this year “had conducted preparations, including reconnaissance of targets, for launching such attacks, which would have caused communal disharmony and terror in the state”, the spokesperson said.

“During the searches, two laptops, eight mobile phones, five SIM cards, one SD card and 14 documents were seized,” he added.