Shimla, July 31 - A Himachal Pradesh court Friday sent an activist of the outlawed Students Islamic Movement of India (SIMI) to 12 days of police custody, officials said.

Mohd Akil Kureshi was arrested by the police from a village near Baddi in Solan district early Thursday morning.

'A court in Kasauli this (Friday) evening sent Kureshi to police custody for 12 days,' Superintendent of Police Sumedha Divedi told IANS on phone.

'Kureshi came here (Himachal Pradesh) for some contract killing. We are trying to find out who had hired him (for the murder) and who was his target,' she said.

The police have seized a pistol and nine cartridges from Kureshi's possession. He is a resident of Ujjain in Madhya Pradesh.

'Kureshi's identity has been established by Madhya Pradesh police,' the police officer added.

Baddi is an industrial hub of the state, where more than 500 medium and large-scale units have set up base following the special industrial package announced by the Atal Bihari Vajpayee-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) government at the centre in 2003.