New Delhi, Nov 13: The doctors arrested in connection with the “white-collar terror module” had raised more than Rs 26 lakh to procure materials used in the deadly blast near Red Fort, an official said on Thursday.
The four suspects — including ”Dr Muzammil Ganaie, Dr Adeel Ahmad Rather, Dr Shaheen Sayeed and Dr Umar Nabi — had pooled in the amount in cash, which was handed over to Dr Umar for safekeeping and operational use, they said.
Dr Umar — who hailed from Jammu and Kashmir’s Pulwama and was an assistant professor at Al Falah University in Haryana’s Faridabad — was behind the wheels of the Hyundai i20 that exploded in the busy Red Fort area on Monday evening.
Investigators believe the fund was linked to a larger terror conspiracy.
Using the pooled money, the group had allegedly purchased around 26 quintals of NPK fertiliser approximately worth Rs 3 lakh from suppliers in Gurugram, Nuh and nearby towns.
The fertiliser, mixed with other chemicals, is commonly used to manufacture Improvised Explosive Devices (IED), officials said.
Police sources said the group’s procurement of such a large quantity of the fertiliser ”has become a key lead in the ongoing investigation. The financial transactions and delivery records are being verified, they said.
Sources also said that Umar and Muzammil had a disagreement over the handling of funds in the days leading up to the explosion. The investigators are looking into whether this dispute affected the group’s plans or the timing of the attack.
Nine more arrested in Assam for ‘offensive’ social media posts, tally rises to 15
Nine more people have been arrested in Assam for putting up “offensive” social media posts following the Delhi blast, taking the total number of apprehensions in this regard to 15, Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma said on Thursday.
The fresh arrests have been made since Wednesday night.
“In connection with the offensive social media posts following the Delhi blast, 15 persons have been arrested across Assam so far,” Sarma posted on X.
“In addition to the six arrests made yesterday, overnight, we arrested Rafijul Ali (Bongaigaon), Forid Uddin Laskar (Hailakandi), Inamul Islam (Lakhimpur), Firuj Ahmed alias Papon (Lakhimpur), Shahil Shoman Sikdar alias Shahidul Islam (Barpeta), Rakibul Sultan (Barpeta), Nasim Akram (Hojai), Taslim Ahmed (Kamrup) and Abdur Rohim Mollah alias Bappy Hussain (South Salmara),” he added.
Assam Police remain uncompromising against those who glorify violence, Sarma asserted.
The chief minister on Wednesday said he has instructed the police to arrest those who have welcomed the blast in their social media posts.
He said 35 people from different districts of the state have been identified in this connection.
“We will investigate their links and if we find that anyone has links with Bangladesh or anyone other country, we will take very tough action against them,” the CM said.
Minors and those who were unaware that their devices were used to make such posts will not be arrested, but those responsible will not be spared, Sarma said.
He said that many are deleting their posts now, but “we have taken the screenshots and will be tough in this regard”.
He alleged that it was the same set of people who were protesting at Zubeen Kshetra against the government and were now putting up social media posts welcoming the Delhi blast.
A high-intensity explosion ripped through a slow-moving car at a traffic signal near the Red Fort metro station on Monday evening, killing 12 people and injuring several others. (PTI)
