Pro-ISIS WhatsApp messages circulated in Malyalam in Kerala? NIA begins probe

Kasargode: The National Investigation Agency (NIA) on Sunday begins its probe into pro-Islamic State (IS) messages being circulated on WhatsApp in Kerala, an intelligence officer said here.

The investigation follows a complaint by a local resident who allegedly received a WhatsApp message in Malayalam promoting Islamic State.

"The message is in Malayalam and it has come from Afghanistan. We came to know of this yesterday (Saturday) and the person who received the message has registered a complaint with the NIA and it has commenced a probe into it," the official told IANS on the condition of anonymity.

The group administrator of the WhatsApp group is believed to be a youth from Palakkad who has been reported missing for some time.

Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan had last year informed the state assembly that 21 people -- 17 from Kasargode district and four from Palakkad district -- were missing. The youth were suspected to have joined the terror organisation in Syria.

In the last two months, three youths from Kasargode district were believed to have been killed in the US-led strikes against the IS. Their relatives received social media messages about their deaths.