Delhi car blast: Doctors with bombs

On November 10, astatine 6:55 p.m., a telephone rang astatine the Delhi Fire Services. The panicked caller told an serviceman that a blast had occurred successful a car successful beforehand of the Red Fort. Within minutes, the roads adjacent the precocious information country were chock-a-block with occurrence tenders, ambulances, and constabulary vans, recalls the officer, who did not privation to beryllium named.

The scene, helium remembers, was ghastly. There were shattered solid pieces, dismembered assemblage parts, streaks of blood, and breached conveyance parts connected Netaji Subhash Marg, the roadworthy starring to the Mughal-era sandstone structure.

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Dharmender, a nonmigratory of Greater Noida, an Uttar Pradesh suburb of Delhi, who had gone to store successful the Chandni Chowk area, recalls what happened. “The postulation was moving truly slowly. Suddenly, the entity lit up and determination was a large noise. Those astir the car did not adjacent get a accidental to effort an escape. After the blast, we dragged retired immoderate 7 cab drivers from the country and placed them successful e-rickshaws. All I noticed was that the conveyance which had blown up had a Haryana fig plate.”

Bhupender Singh, a 55-year-old nonmigratory of Noida, who happened to beryllium astatine the site, says helium fled arsenic ambulances carried injured radical from the blast tract to Lok Nayak Hospital, astir 2 kilometres away. His hands inactive shaking, Singh says helium was metres distant from the achromatic four-wheeler that blew up. “The postulation airy had conscionable turned greenish erstwhile the blast occurred. I rolled retired of my conveyance and ran towards the marketplace country connected the other side,” helium says.

Sonu, a defender moving astatine a nationalist toilet successful the area, recalls however helium watched the country with horror. He remains scarred astatine the show of a limb falling adjacent a Jain temple and a disembodied caput landing connected the roadside.

The blast took spot little than 500 metres distant from wherever Prime Minister Narendra Modi had made his Independence Day code successful August. He had declared that a “new normal” had been established aft India’s Operation Sindoor against Pakistan, successful effect to the panic onslaught successful Pahalgam successful Jammu and Kashmir (J&K) successful April. At the blast successful beforehand of Red Fort, officially recognised arsenic a “terror incident” connected November 12, astatine slightest 13 radical died and much than 20 radical were injured.

A time later, the Delhi Police registered a First Information Report astatine the Kotwali constabulary presumption nether the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, 1967; the Explosives Substances Act, 1908; and Section 103(1) (punishment for murder), 109(1) (attempt to murder) and 61(2) (criminal conspiracy) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023. The lawsuit has been transferred to the National Investigation Agency. So far, the J&K Police person arrested 9 suspects successful a lawsuit registered by them connected October 19 and which is present intrinsically linked to the blast.

The 3 doctors

Hours earlier the blast, astir 50 km distant successful Haryana, the Faridabad Police Commissioner, Satendra Kumar Gupta, addressed a property conference. He announced that the police, successful collaboration with the J&K Police, had recovered 360 kilograms of inflammable worldly — perchance ammonium nitrate — stuffed into 12 suitcases, an AK-Krinkov rifle, magazines, walkie-talkies, timers, and batteries during a raid astatine a country astatine Fatehpur Taga colony successful Faridabad district. “The recoveries were made from the country wherever 32-year-old Muzammil Ahmad Ganaie had moved successful 15 days ago,” Gupta said. Ganaie is simply a inferior doc with the exigency helping of the infirmary wrong the field of Al Falah University successful Dhouj

Later, sources said that the country had been rented by Dr. Ganaie. On October 30, the constabulary arrested Dr. Ganaie from the college.

At the aforesaid time, the J&K Police announced done a property merchandise that they had busted an “inter-State and transnational panic module” linked to the Jaish-e-Mohammad and al Qaeda-affiliated Ansar Ghazwat ul Hind. They said 7 people, including Dr. Ganaie and different doctor, Adeel Ahmad Rather, who Dr. Ganaie led them to, had been arrested. They besides said that they had seized 2,900 kg of improvised explosive-device-making worldly implicit 15 days. The constabulary arrested Dr. Rather connected November 5 from Saharanpur successful Uttar Pradesh, wherever helium was moving astatine a backstage hospital.

During their probe pursuing the blast, information agencies recovered that Dr. Umar ul Nabi — besides moving successful Al Falah “wanted” by the police, missing since October 7, and portion of the ‘white collar’ panic module — was astatine the instrumentality of the achromatic car that had gone up successful flames that day. He died successful the incident.

CCTV footage retrieved aboriginal showed him entering the nationalist superior from the Badarpur toll plaza successful south-east Delhi astatine 8.04 a.m. connected November 10. According to sources, the car was archetypal spotted extracurricular Asian Hospital successful Faridabad astatine astir 7:30 a.m. Dr. Nabi near the conveyance betwixt 3:19 p.m. and 6:22 p.m. successful the Red Fort parking lot. In the meantime, Dr. Nabi did a recce of respective spots crossed Delhi, specified arsenic Kashmere Gate, Sunehri Masjid, and Daryaganj. As helium bought the toll summons wearing a achromatic mask, cameras showed a ample container connected the rear seat.

The information agencies fishy that Dr. Nabi panicked and triggered the weaponry successful haste arsenic it was not decently assembled. Only a portion of his assemblage could beryllium retrieved from the explosive-laden car. It was aboriginal matched with the DNA illustration of his parent who lives successful Pulwama, southbound Kashmir. Officials accidental Dr. Nabi appears to beryllium the mastermind of the blast.

Posters that gave it away

Weeks earlier, connected October 17, posters printed successful Urdu appeared astatine respective places successful Srinagar’s Nowgam area. They told section residents not to cooperate with constabulary and information unit and not springiness them abstraction to beryllium successful their shops.

These posters piqued the curiosity of a elder serviceman successful J&K’s Criminal Investigation Department (CID) and helium asked the section constabulary to analyse them. After looking done CCTV footage, the constabulary arrested 3 men — Arif Nisar Dar (22), Yasir-ul-Ashraf (19), and Maqsood Ahmad Dar alias Shahid (25). The men told the constabulary they were asked by a section cleric, Irfan Ahmad (24), to paste the posters.

A elder authorities authoritative says, “When the cleric was questioned, helium tried to mislead america and led america to a idiosyncratic from Ganderbal — Zameer Ahmad Ahanger alias Mutlasha, 29. He had a pistol. We arrested him. It was erstwhile we looked done the cleric’s telephone that we recovered that helium had been successful interaction with the 3 doctors: Dr. Ganaie, Dr. Rather, and Dr. Nabi. This raised suspicion. Why would a Class V dropout, who gave spiritual sermons, beryllium funny successful talking to doctors?”

According to the elder authorities official, the cleric, Ahmad, had been roped successful by the doctors to radicalise others. “It was Dr. Ganaie who had asked him to circulate the pamphlets. The cleric had archetypal met Dr. Ganaie successful 2023 erstwhile helium went with idiosyncratic to a authorities infirmary successful Srinagar for treatment,” helium says.

The authoritative adds that Dr. Nabi was highly radicalised and convinced Dr. Ganaie that the strategy should change. “He was upset with the contiguous signifier of governance and wanted to found Islamic law. They had been amassing the ammonium nitrate oregon urea, easy disposable successful the marketplace arsenic fertilizers, implicit the past six months. The different 2 doctors [Dr. Ganaie and Dr. Rather] said that they acted connected Dr. Nabi’s instructions. He knew erstwhile and however the concoction was to beryllium used,” says the official. “As doctors, they knew a just spot astir chemicals and astir of the items that they had planned to usage for making the bombs had been bought from unfastened markets.”

Another authoritative says that the program had been successful the works for the past 2 years. “It was to flight scrutiny and make a 2nd basal that the doctors, who were moving astatine authorities hospitals successful Kashmir, relocated to backstage hospitals successful Faridabad and Saharanpur,” the authoritative says.

Officials accidental it was the posters that helped them bust the network, since the doctors had nary erstwhile transgression record. “We recovered an AK-56 firearm from the authorities aesculapian assemblage successful Anantnag, wherever Dr. Rather had worked earlier. He said the limb was not his. He said it belonged to Dr. Nabi, who had got it from a violent successful Shopian,” says the official.

On November 8, the J&K Police recovered an AK-Krinkov from the car of different doc moving astatine Al Falah University — Dr. Shaheen Saeed. Police sources accidental she was a adjacent person of Dr. Ganaie and knew that her car was being utilized by him to ferry explosives. They arrested her and picked up her younger brother, Dr. Parvez Saeed Ansari, from Saharanpur for questioning.

“Initially, we were blessed that we had recovered weapons. Only erstwhile we raided the rented premises of Dr. Ganaie connected November 9-10 did we realise the enormity of the case,” the authoritative says.

On July 30, portion briefing Members of Parliament astir Operation Mahadev, a associated antagonistic panic effort to termination terrorists liable for the Pahalgam panic attack, Union Home Minister Amit Shah said successful the Rajya Sabha that nary section had joined a violent radical successful J&K successful the past six -months. He said those being killed successful information operations successful J&K were each foreigners.

Investigating whereabouts

The officials accidental they are yet to conclusively found the people of the onslaught oregon the planned dates of the panic strikes. “Dr. Nabi had a stellar world record,” says an official. “He was 1 of the champion doctors successful Kashmir. He had ranked archetypal successful his aesculapian course. But helium was raising funds and was besides successful interaction with their handler successful Pakistan.” A property merchandise from the J&K Police connected November 10 states, “The radical has been utilizing encrypted channels, for indoctrination, coordination, money question and logistics. Funds were raised done nonrecreational and world networks, nether the guise of social/charitable causes.”

The authoritative adds that the probe and cognition to bust the ‘white collar’ panic module had been initially kept nether wraps arsenic Dr. Nabi and others had not been arrested. However, the property league by the Faridabad Police Commissioner changed things. “We had alerted different States astir Dr. Nabi but did not cognize astir the strength of the lawsuit then. The announcement astir a property league had been made a time earlier and it was each implicit the media. This perchance explains Dr. Nabi’s travails crossed the metropolis connected November 10. We don’t cognize however galore explosives helium had,” the authoritative says.

During their investigation, officials recovered that Dr. Ganaie and his member had visited the UAE, Saudi Arabia, and Turkiye successful 2022. That sojourn is present being scrutinised. They besides recovered that Dr. Rather’s brother, Dr. Muzaffar, whose past known determination was the UAE, has been missing since September. They fishy helium is successful Afghanistan. The J&K Police person issued a reddish country announcement against him.

The waiting children

On November 11, a time aft the blast, Sonu walked done the gates of the mortuary with his eyes glued to his feet. He had travel to instrumentality distant the assemblage of his 23-year-old son, Nouman. “He had travel to Delhi with his person to bargain immoderate worldly for his cosmetic store successful Shamli [Uttar Pradesh],” says Sonu, sobbing. He does not cognize what happened to Nouman’s friend.

More than 5 km away, a 10-year-old miss kept waiting for her father, Md. Mohsin, to instrumentality from work. “Mohsin had called his wife, Sultana, and had informed her that helium would beryllium late, but that helium wanted to devour meal with the children,” says Shabeena, Mohsin’s aunt.

In Dhouj, different 10-year-old waited, on with his 3 siblings and ailing mother, for his father’s return. “My father, Md. Ishtiyaq, was expected to instrumentality maine to the oculus specializer connected Monday aft helium finished his lunch. But conscionable erstwhile helium had a wound of immoderate roti, constabulary officers came and took him away,” says the child. The J&K Police arrested Ishtiyaq, the imam astatine Al Falah mosque, aft 360 kg of explosives and ammunition were recovered astatine his location successful Fatehpur Taga, which helium had rented to Dr. Ganaie.

Ishtiyaq’s girl says helium utilized to person a wage of ₹10,000 from the Al Falah School of Medical Sciences and Research Centre each month. “Everyone who lives successful that country comes to commune successful the mosque. Similarly, Dr. Ganaie excessively would travel 2-3 times a week to pray. Sometimes, we sold him buffalo milk. But helium ne'er came home,” she says. The miss adds that her begetter and Dr. Ganaie got successful interaction erstwhile her 7-year-old member had to acquisition an appendix cognition successful 2024, though helium was not the treating doctor.

The Faridabad constabulary scoured done the houses of the residents of Fatehpur Taga, a colony 5 km away, wherever the imam had built a two-room location that helium rented retired to a mates and to Dr. Ganaie and which had been utilized to store explosives.

Salim, 67, a nonmigratory of Fatehpur Taga, says helium ne'er saw Dr. Ganaie and the villagers did not cognize the imam. “Md. Ishtiyaq was not a local. He came from Mewat. He was an imam astatine the Al Falah mosque successful Dhouj. That is each we know; helium ne'er socialised with radical successful this village. The tenants present kept changing,” helium says.

For Hazi Madrasi, 85, a nonmigratory of Dhouj, renting retired his country to the aforesaid doc has outgo him dearly. “In September, helium [Dr. Ganaie] came to rent a room. He paid maine an beforehand and left,” helium says. On September 13, Dr. Ganaie dropped his belongings and ne'er came to enactment there, helium asserts. Madrasi says helium asked Dr. Ganaie for his details, but each helium got was a handwritten enactment which read, “DOCTOR — AL FALAH Rent — 1,200, Advance — Rs. 2,400, paid connected 13/11/25.” Dr. Ganaie rented the country for 3 months, from September 13 to November 13.

After the blast, a fewer J&K Police unit came and searched the country and seized Dr. Ganaie’s belongings. “I gave him the country reasoning helium is simply a doc and would beryllium of assistance during emergencies. Who knew these were his intentions?”

At Al Falah University, students and professors person remained connected field ever since the instauration came nether the radar of investigators. The samosa and beverage stalls are deserted. Security unit basal everywhere.

A pupil says she had not seen Dr. Ganaie much. But aft seeing his photo, she recalls having seen him successful the exigency ward. Another pupil says Dr. Shaheen Saeed, a elder prof astatine the university, was reserved but professional. “She ever came prepared and was speedy to resoluteness each doubts, successful classes and later,” helium says.

While investigations continue, betterment for galore of the injured is simply a agelong roadworthy ahead. Shakir, a 35-year-old cab driver, is inactive successful the intensive attraction portion of the Lok Nayak Hospital. He has incurred respective pain injuries successful his legs, ears, and face, and suffered a large fracture successful his foot. “When Shakir regained consciousness, helium archetypal enquired astir his passenger,” says his brother, Taufiq. The passenger, Rinki Puniya, a nonmigratory of Haridwar, has besides been admitted successful the aforesaid infirmary with pain injuries and fractures.

Taufiq says Shakir has not spoken overmuch astir that day. “He is not mentally prepared to speech astir what helium saw,” helium says. Given what helium went through, “it is simply a occurrence that helium is alive.”