The National Investigation Agency on Wednesday claimed to have unravelled the entire conspiracy behind last year’s Patna and Bodh Gaya blasts with the arrest of the remaining three adult and a juvenile accused. While all the 14 suspects in the Patna serial explosions are now in the police net, eight have been nabbed in the Bodh Gaya case.
Among those arrested is top fugitive Haidar Ali aka Black Beauty, who carried a reward of Rs. 10 lakh on his head. He was allegedly a common link between the Students Islamic Movement of India (SIMI) and banned outfit Indian Mujahideen.
Haidar was arrested along with Mojibullah Ansari in Ranchi on Tuesday. Based on their purported disclosures, the agency in coordination with its local counterparts tracked down Numan Ansari and apprehended the juvenile suspect at Daltonganj in Jharkhand hours later.
“All the four are SIMI operatives belonging to Ranchi. Haidar is the most important after the arrest of Tehsin Akhtar aka Monu and Waqas (Pakistan national and alleged bomb-making expert). He recruited young boys and was attempting to revive the organisation,” said NIA chief Sharad Kumar, adding that the cases were cracked through an excellent coordination with the central intelligence agencies and local police.
Mr. Kumar said: “While the four accused are being interrogated, the others arrested in the case earlier have disclosed that their target was Narendra Modi. They had also conducted reconnaissance at his public meeting venues in Ambikapur (Chhattisgarh), Delhi and Kanpur. They tried to get close to him, but due to heavy security presence finally decided to trigger blasts in Patna (during Mr. Modi’s Hunkar Rally last October) to create terror.”
Following the Patna blasts, the NIA had first conducted a raid last November at Iram Lodge in Ranchi where Haidar, Mojibullah, Imtiyaz Ansari and Numan had stayed. “We seized explosives, detonators and analogue watches from their lodge-room. The explosions in Bodh Gaya were carried out by the outfit to avenge atrocities against Rohingyas,” said Mr. Kumar, adding that the NIA has also arrested all the accused in the Dilsukhnagar blasts in Hyderabad last year.
During interrogation, top Indian Mujahideen suspect Mohammad Ahmed Zarar Sidibappa alias Yasin Bhatkal had also mentioned accused Haidar as Black Beauty, stating that he had first met him in Darbhanga. In January 2011 when he went To Ranchi from Goa, he met Haidar again. Tehsin Akhtar, after a series of arrests in Darbhanga, had also sought help from Haidar in arranging a hideout in Ranchi.
