Doctors, Cleric, Businessmen: The Transnational ‘White Collar’ Terror Module Of 7 Who Planned Delhi Blast

New Delhi: Since the Delhi car blast killed at least 12 people near Red Fort, security forces from different states have arrested seven people who are allegedly part of a “transnational terror module”, while also seizing thousands of kilograms of explosives, detonators, timers and other bomb-making equipment.

Multiple people were arrested in Haryana's Faridabad earlier. Later on, some people in Jammu and Kashmir were arrested a few days before the blast took place. According to the police, Dr Umar Nabi, who was behind the wheel of the i20 car in which the Red Fort explosion took place, was also a member of the module. He allegedly hurried the plans for the blast after the module was busted. He has close ties with two other doctors, also part of the alleged module.

According to security forces, Umar met two other people while he was living in Al Falah Medical College — Dr Muzammil Ahmad Ganai and Dr Adil Rather.

Muzammil is a resident of Koli in Pulwama, J&K, and is a former student of Al Falah hospital. Police said they found more than 300 kilograms of explosives from Muzammil’s rented home. Adil Rather passed out of Srinagar's Government Medical College in 2018. He was also a senior resident of Anantnag's Government Medical College (GMC) from 2022-2024.

The third member of the alleged module is said to be a cleric, Irfan Ahmad, who is allegedly the Imam of Jammu and Kashmir's mosque in Shopian. He is allegedly responsible for "radicalising" others and help them join the module.

The fourth member, Arif Nisar Dar is a resident of Nowgam in J&K and is believed to be in contact with the cleric and Muzammil.

According to the police, at least three people are residents of Nowgam, while another is from Ganderbal.

Officials have said that Yasir Ul Ashraf, another member and a resident of Nowgam, runs a business in the area, managing his uncle's shop.

The seventh alleged member, Zameer Ahmad Ahanger also is a resident of Ganderbal and locally known as "Mutlasha”.

According to police, the group of seven used "encrypted channels for indoctrination, coordination, movement and logistics”.

The alleged terror module was busted in Haryana's Faridabad earlier, with police officials questioning students, the principal and faculty members working with Muzammil, with more than 52 people being questioned.

In a major breakthrough on Monday, the Jammu and Kashmir Police, in coordination with the Haryana Police, recovered 360 kg of suspected ammonium nitrate and 2,900 kg of IED-making materials, including chemicals, detonators and wires, from an apartment in Faridabad.

They said two days later, an AK-56 rifle and other ammunition were seized in an Anantnag Hospital and more guns, pistols and explosives were subsequently recovered from a place in Faridabad.

On November 9, one Madrasi, a resident of Dhauj, Faridabad, was arrested from his house. The next day, a massive consignment of explosives, weighing 2,563 kilograms, was recovered from the house of Hafeez Mohammad Ishtiaq, a resident of Mewat and an Imam at Al Falah Mosque in Faridabad's Dhera Colony.

During these operations, Umar, also part of the module and working as medical practitioner at Al Falah Medical College, changed his location as he was under constant pressure from the security forces, the sources said.

Security agencies and intelligence network successfully "dismantled this Faridabad module", recovered a large quantity of explosive material and prevented a major conspiracy aimed at causing large-scale damage in the country.

As soon as the news of the explosion came on Tuesday, Delhi Police and other security agencies rushed to the site. Home Minister Amit Shah immediately directed NSG, NIA, and forensic teams to reach the location. The injured were promptly taken to the nearest hospital and the ownership of the vehicle used in the blast was confirmed.

The blast probe has since been handed over to the National Investigation Agency.

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