Thane stabbing case: ATS probes ‘lone wolf’ angle, CM flags 'self-radicalisation'

Investigators probing the stabbing of two security guards in Maharashtra’s Thane district said on Tuesday (April 28) they have recovered a note at the accused man’s home that mentions “lone wolf” attacks and the Islamic State.

Attack and initial findings

The assault took place early Monday at an under-construction site in the Mira Road area. According to a state Anti-Terrorism Squad official, initial findings suggest the episode may fit the pattern of a “lone wolf” attack.

The suspect, identified as Zaib Zubair Ansari, 31, is alleged to have asked the guards to recite the “Kalma” before attacking them with a knife.

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In security terminology, a “lone wolf attack” describes an act of violence carried out by an individual without direct support or direction from a larger organisation.

Ansari had returned to India from the US in 2020, the official said.

Victims’ account and ATS probe

One of the injured guards told investigators that when they were unable to recite the “Kalma”, the attacker stabbed them, leaving both with serious injuries.

The Maharashtra government transferred the case to the Anti-Terrorism Squad on Monday evening.

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Ansari lived alone at the Smita Regency building in Naya Nagar, Mira Road, about 200 metres from the incident site, the official said. His wife, who is of Afghan origin, had left him and gone to the US, as per the probe.

During a search of his residence, the ATS recovered a note referring to lone wolf attacks and the Islamic State, a laptop, and three copies of the Quran, the official said.

‘ Underwent self-radicalisation’: CM

Speaking to reporters in Solapur, Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis said that the accused, identified as Zaib Zubair Ansari (31) seemed to have undergone "self-radicalisation".

He also said that the accused was apparently influenced by online content and books and acquired an extremist mindset.

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"It seems to be a case of self-radicalisation. The individual appears to have been influenced by certain content and developed an understanding of concepts like 'jihad' and killing people of other religions," Fadnavis said.

"With the help of agencies like the ATS and NIA, we will probe who is behind this radicalisation and whether others are involved," he added.

Sequence of attack

According to the ATS official, the accused first asked the two security guards for directions to a nearby mosque.

The guards told him that they did not know the location of the mosque. Ansari then asked them whether they were Hindus, and moved ahead. Within a few seconds, he returned, pulled out a knife from his pocket, and allegedly attacked security guard Subrato Sen and his supervisor Rajkumar Mishra, the official said.

Asked to recite Kalma

Before attacking, Ansari asked the supervisor whether he was also a Hindu, and if not, he should recite the 'Kalma'. The accused stabbed them because they were unable to recite the 'Kalma', the official said.

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Notably, terrorists who targeted tourists at Pahalgam in Jammu and Kashmir in April 2025 had allegedly asked one of the victims, a Christian, to recite the ‘Kalma’ before shooting him dead.

Background of the accused

Ansari was identified with the help of CCTV footage and apprehended within one and a half hours by Mira Bhayander-Vasai Virar Police.

The accused had lived in the US with his parents from 2000 to 2020. After his work permit expired, he returned to India and stayed in Kurla area of Mumbai and Vashi in neighbouring Navi Mumbai for some time, the ATS official said.

Since 2022, he has been living alone at the Smita Regency building.

The Mira Bhayander area had witnessed communal tensions and violence during a Ram Mandir Pran Pratishtha ceremony rally in 2024.

(With agency inputs)