Sikkim police issued an elaborate statement on Wednesday on legal steps taken against 19-year-old Md Arju arrested on Tuesday in the Himalayan state capital Gangtok for suspected terror links.

The statement, issued by Tenzing Loden Lepcha, the deputy inspector general of Gangtok range and CID, said an FIR was registered against the youth in connection with the alleged online self-radicalisation and dissemination of extremist propaganda through digital platforms.

Charges under the BNS, the UAPA Act and the Information Technology Act have been brought against him. Mingyur Tempo Nadik, a deputy superintendent of police, is leading the probe.

So far, the investigators have found that the youth was “consuming” extremist propaganda over an extended period through online platforms and was allegedly influenced by such content.

“They are also examining evidence suggesting possible attempts by the accused to disseminate and propagate extremist material through digital platforms,” says the release.

The police have also made it clear that at this stage, there is no evidence of any organised terror module, local extremist network, or communal angle within the state, and that the probe presently relates to the alleged activities of one individual, meaning Arju.

The statement says that there was no imminent threat to public safety, communal harmony, or law and order in Sikkim as of now.

However, a police source said that there were certain digital leads pointing to possible interstate and international ramifications. "These are being examined in coordination with central agencies and law enforcement agencies of other states. The director general of police is in contact with his counterparts in the states concerned to verify the leads,” said a source.

Arju, a resident of Nam Nang area in Gangtok, was nabbed following inputs from central intelligence agencies. The youth used to run a “paan” shop with his father in Lower MG Marg.

The police source added that online radicalisation was a new security challenge and alerted parents, teachers and society at large to it.