Red Fort blast that killed 13 linked to JeM–AGuH module busted in Faridabad–Srinagar raids; NIA probe finds same ammonium nitrate batch used in 2,900 kg cache.
First details emerge: Red Fort blast linked to Faridabad, Srinagar raids (Image: File)
New Delhi: Investigation into the Red Fort car blast has revealed strong links between the explosion in Delhi and the ongoing Faridabad–Srinagar raids that uncovered a large cache of explosives and weapons tied to Jaish-e-Mohammad (JeM) and Ansar Ghazwat-ul-Hind (AGuH).
The blast occurred on Monday evening when a white Hyundai i20 (HR 26 CE 7674) exploded near the Red Fort Metro Station around 6:52 p.m., killing 13 people and injuring more than 30. The car was traced to Dr Umar Mohammad (36) of Pulwama, a doctor at Al-Falah Medical College, Faridabad.
Investigators are still verifying whether it was a suicide detonation or whether the improvised explosive device (IED) went off accidentally as he attempted to flee.
Intelligence sources in Jammu and Kashmir said the Hyundai i20 was originally registered to Mohammad Salman, who was arrested on Monday night. The car changed hands several times thereafter — first sold to Nadeem, then to a used-car dealer, Royal Car Zone in Faridabad Sector 37. It was later purchased successively by Aamir, then Tariq Ahmad, who is believed to be part of the Faridabad terror module, and finally by Dr Umar Mohammad.
Records show the same car was challaned for wrong parking in Faridabad on 20 September. Its registration certificate remains in Salman’s name and was never formally transferred. According to CCTV footage, the vehicle was parked for nearly three hours near the Sunehri Masjid, close to the Red Fort — entering the lot at 3:19 p.m. and leaving at 6:48 p.m., minutes before the explosion. Traffic-camera data also show the car entering Delhi through the Badarpur border earlier in the day.
The explosion followed by less than 24 hours the police announcement of an inter-state and trans-national module bust in Faridabad and Srinagar. That operation, launched after JeM posters were found in Srinagar’s Nowgam area, led to coordinated raids across Srinagar, Ganderbal, Shopian, Faridabad and Saharanpur, exposing a “white-collar” network involving medical professionals and academics.
In the Faridabad raid, police seized around 360 kg of ammonium nitrate, 20 timers, remote-control devices, rifles and ammunition from a rented room in Dhoj village, held by Dr Mujammil Shakeel, a Pulwama resident studying at Al-Falah University. Further seizures across linked sites took the total to nearly 2,900 kg of explosive precursors. Those arrested include Dr Mujammil Shakeel, Dr Adil Ahmad Rather, and Dr Shaheen Shahid, besides local operatives including Tariq Ahmad.
The NIA has taken over the case and registered an FIR under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA). Forensic teams are comparing material recovered from the Hyundai i20 with samples seized in Faridabad to establish whether the same batch of ammonium nitrate was used.
It is understood that recent police related developments in the NCR region triggered a panic reaction in members of the terror module, which among others, led to last evening blast.
