Two of the suspects—Sharjeel Shaikh, 35, and Zulfikar Ali Barodawala, 36—arrested by the National Investigating Agency (NIA) from Borivali-Padgha village in Bhiwandi, were leading a normal family life there with their wife and kids. Their friends and neighbours have been in shock since they got the news of their involvement in terror activities.

According to the NIA, the duo is part of a sleeper cell operating on the instructions of Islamic State (IS) handlers. However, their neighbours, who find it hard to believe that they could be part of a terror outfit or a possible threat to the nation, know them as happy-go-lucky men with whom they cracked jokes over evening tea and snacks.