- Indian agencies arrested 250+ people linked to Shahzad Bhatti on August 12
- Bhatti runs a large social media network to recruit Indian youth into terrorism
- His online persona is a Robin Hood-style gangster protecting supporters
Indian agencies arrested more than 250 people from 14 states over their alleged links to Pakistan's gangster-turned-terror-handler Shahzad Bhatti in a single day on August 12, according to Union Home Minister Amit Shah. Bhatti is accused of running a terror recruitment ring through social media.
NDTV Datafy has analysed the "Bhatti-verse" of social media to understand how Bhatti built his vast online network and how he lures young Indians into terrorist activities.
At first glance, his social media pages do not appear to be run by a Pakistani gangster-turned-terror handler. They feature swanky videos set to popular Punjabi songs and Bollywood movie dialogues, clips from Indian news channels, and posts carrying hashtags popular in India.
Instagram video screenshot shows Shahzad Bhatti in downtown Dubai.
Bhatti's social media network does not appear polished or professional-grade and relies heavily on volunteers. It appears to be focused solely on luring Indian youth from underprivileged backgrounds into his network, particularly those who may not hesitate to pursue a life of crime in the hope of making it big.
He has built an online persona of a Robin Hood-style gangster, a simple man who helps and protects his supporters, whom he calls "pra" (Punjabi for "brother"), at all costs, donates to the poor, and defends Islam without insulting other religions. He projects the image of a man who is to be loved and respected, not challenged.
A Vast Online Presence
Bhatti runs a large network of social media accounts, pages, groups and broadcast channels on Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat, WhatsApp and YouTube. According to a scan of social media by NDTV Datafy, more than two dozen accounts and pages with "Shahbaz Bhatti" in their usernames are active across these platforms. More than one crore people follow these accounts and pages. But this could be only a portion of Bhatti's online presence.
There are dozens of other accounts carrying his network's signature "333" or "software update" keywords in their usernames.
“333” is a signature associated with Bhatti's former boss, Farrukh Khokhar of Rawalpindi's prominent politician-gangster Khokhar family, while “software update” is a phrase Bhatti and his supporters use to glorify his crimes.
Most of these accounts, with followings ranging from a few hundred to a few thousand, appear to be run by young video editors based in Pakistan who repackage his old videos and circulate them across social media.
As per media reports, the Government of India has blocked several accounts bearing "333" in their usernames. But for Bhatti, it is a cat-and-mouse game. He counters the crackdown by creating new accounts and actively coordinating with supporters to sustain and boost his online presence, an analysis of videos from his network suggests.
He often holds group video calls with these young video editors.
"I thank all my editor brothers who download, edit and repost my videos. Thank you for considering me your elder brother, promoting me, and even fighting for me," he said in a video message.
The use of these accounts suggests a clear pattern: they are meant to communicate with people in India, not Pakistan. For instance, he stopped posting content on three Instagram pages with a cumulative following of nearly 3.5 lakh followers in mid-2025 after the Government banned the accounts in India.
Similarly, another Instagram account with more than 13,600 followers was abandoned in July this year. That account, too, is currently unavailable in India.
The captions of almost every video on Bhatti's pages feature hashtags related to India.
Bhatti's Glamorous Appeal
The "Bhatti-verse" of social media is filled with videos of him playing with tigers, lions and cubs, travelling in large convoys of high-end cars, displaying firearms, attending high-profile events with associates, and clips of podcasters and Indian media channels discussing his exploits. Rearing big cats is regulated but not outright illegal in Pakistan.
His videos also show him at airports, visiting foreign countries, or having lunch with associates at high-end restaurants abroad.
Most of these videos date back to the period when Bhatti was a member of the Khokhar gang. His online army of video editors repackages this old footage to songs by Sidhu Moosewala and dialogues from OTT series such as Mirzapur.
His supporters portray him as a kind-hearted man who helps the poor. In one such video, he promises a man over a video call that he will send additional money for the wedding of the latter's daughter.
Bhatti also closely tracks developments in India and posts provocative videos whenever he senses an opportunity to deepen divisions. For instance, he recently posted a video about the encounter killing of a young man named Ranjeet Singh in Punjab's Gurdaspur district earlier this month. In the video, Bhatti described the encounter as "fake" and claimed Singh had been targeted because of his religious identity. Singh was killed days after being accused of killing two policemen near the India-Pakistan border.
An AI generated image shows Bhatti with late Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. His social media profiles often carry realistic AI generated images to project a macho image.
To target Indian Muslim youth, Bhatti frequently boasts of going after anyone who speaks against Islam or intends harm towards Muslims.
He also projects the image of a protective elder brother. After arrests on August 12, Bhatti created a new Instagram account. In its first video, he urged supporters in India not to follow the account, like posts, or leave comments in order to avoid being tracked by Indian agencies.
"If you want to connect with me, send me a direct message," he said.
Gullible Youth Fall Prey
His mafia-style lifestyle attracts a section of gullible young people from India, with many openly carrying out crimes at his behest, seemingly unaware that their comments may be monitored by security agencies.
"Shahzad bhai, don't worry. I will message you and you can send me the name of the enemy whose home is to be bombed," a man in his twenties from rural Punjab commented on one of his videos.
Armaan Deep, another young man from Punjab who posts photographs of himself in the uniform of an Amritsar-based security agency, commented on one of Bhatti's videos saying that he wanted to meet him.
About Shahzad Bhatti
Bhatti has been linked to several criminal cases in recent years. He allegedly helped the killer of Maharashtra politician Baba Siddique flee India and was also accused of directing a grenade attack on a police station in Gurdaspur, Punjab, last year.
By his own admission, he moved abroad nearly seven years ago. Videos posted on his social media accounts suggest that he operates his network from Dubai.
