India, Oct. 25 -- They were young, educated, and lived what seemed to be ordinary lives. But behind their smartphone and laptop screens, the two men were slowly drawn into the dark web of ISIS propaganda, and eventually allegedly converted it into a plot to strike Delhi on Diwali.

The two youths - Md Adnan Khan alias Abu Muharib (19), from Delhi's Sadiq Nagar, and Adnan Khan alias Abu Mohammad (20), from Bhopal - were arrested in a pre-emptive operation that likely averted a major tragedy, according to officials.

The duo, described as "highly radicalised", had allegedly pledged allegiance to the Islamic State and were working under the command of a handler operating from the Syria-Turkey border.

According to investigators, the men had ...