Arrested doctor recced Red Fort many times in January; key suspects
went to Türkiye: Sources
NEW DELHI, Nov 12: The government on Wednesday termed the car explosion outside Red Fort as a “heinous terror incident” and directed investigating agencies to deal with the case with “utmost urgency and professionalism” to bring those behind it and their sponsors to justice without delay.
The Union Cabinet at its meeting, chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi upon his return from Bhutan, reaffirmed India’s unwavering commitment to a policy of zero tolerance towards terrorism in all its forms and manifestations.
It said the situation continues to be “closely monitored” at the highest levels of the government.
Observing a two-minute silence in honour of the innocent lives lost in the terrorist incident, the Cabinet adopted a resolution condemning the dastardly act and expressing profound grief over the loss of lives in the incident.
Meanwhile, analysis of dump data retrieved from the mobile phone of Dr Muzammil Ganaie, who was arrested after police busted a white-collar terror module recently, showed that he conducted multiple reconnaissance of the Red Fort area in January this year, officials said.
Police said they suspect these recesses were part of a larger conspiracy to target the historic monument on Republic Day, but were foiled due to intensified patrolling in the area at the time.
During investigation, it was found that two of the key suspects, Dr Umar, who was driving the Hyundai i20 car that exploded, and Muzammil, had travelled to Türkiye. Sources said the investigators have found Turkish immigration stamps in their passports and are examining whether the two met any foreign based handler during their trip.
Delhi Police also sounded an alert across all police stations, posts, and border checkpoints in the city to trace a red Ford EcoSport car suspected to be linked to the Red Fort blast case, sources said.
The alert was issued after the investigation revealed that other suspects, already connected to the Hyundai i20 used in the explosion, were also in possession of another red-coloured car. The vehicle was recovered in Haryana.
The agencies are also analysing mobile dump data from the Red Fort area between 3 pm and 6.30 pm on the day of the blast to track Dr Umar’s movement and communication.
Dr Muzammil visited the Red Fort multiple times to study the security arrangements and crowd density patterns along with Dr Umar Nabi, an assistant professor at the Al-Falah University who is said to have been driving the car that exploded on Monday, officials said.
Their movements were corroborated through tower location data and CCTV footage collected from nearby areas, they added.
The Special Cell of Delhi Police has detained a Faridabad-based car dealer and directed all second-hand car dealers across Delhi and adjoining states to verify and share details of recent vehicle sales, officials said on Wednesday.
As part of the ongoing probe into the module’s activities, Jammu and Kashmir Police on Wednesday detained a preacher from Mewat in Haryana.
Maulvi Ishtiyaq, who has been brought to Srinagar, was staying in a rented house within the Al Falah University complex in Faridabad. It was from his home that police had recovered more than 2,500 kilograms of explosives, officials said. (PTI)
