Authorities recently dismantled a Jaish-e-Mohammed module, apprehending several doctors with huge quantities of ammonium nitrate and assault weapons. On 10th November, a blast occurred near the Red Fort in Delhi just hours following this development, resulting in the deaths of nearly a dozen individuals and injuring many more.
Now, the security establishment revealed that the blast was likely a result of panic and desperation of another part of the terror network because the vigilant security agencies effectively exposed their bases and hideouts throughout Jammu and Kashmir, Haryana and Uttar Pradesh.
A senior official disclosed, “Raids by security agencies across multiple locations in Delhi-NCR (National Capital Region) and Pulwama, which led to the recovery of nearly 3,000 kilograms of explosives, are believed to have forced the suspect to act hastily under mounting pressure,” as reported by The Times of India.
TOI has reported that, the device used for the explosion was not completely developed and was only loosely put together, which limited its impact and proved the rush to act. There was no crater left by the explosion, and no bullets or shrapnel were discovered.
An officer conveyed, “Dr Umar, a member of the module, changed his location from Al Falah Medical College campus following the crackdown on other members of his module. He is the one who was driving the car used in the blast, as corroborated by CCTV footage. The blast was caused by the very same explosives that were found in Faridabad hideouts.” The source added, “Whether this blast was premeditated or accidental is a matter of investigation.”
The fact that the car was travelling through traffic and wasn’t driven into a crowd, a common tactic used in vehicle-borne IED assaults to maximise casualties, was one of the indicators that suggested an accidental explosion. Additionally, it is not ruled out that the explosives might have been triggered during transportation from point A to point B.
Officials described the fatalities as unfortunate, but stated that a large strike was not achievable due to the police’s alertness in recognising the JeM posters in J&K and the following operations of intelligence and police forces. According to the officer, the destruction of the terror module that caused the hasty explosion in Delhi demonstrated how vigilant the nation is against terrorism and oulined, “This is a success of our intelligence agencies, security apparatus and law enforcement officers.”
A few offensive posters that had appeared in Srinagar served as the impetus for the case inquiry. On 19th October, a formal complaint was filed in the matter. Notably, other Kashmiri doctors, Dr Muzammil Shakeel (Muzammil Ganaie) alias Musaib and Dr Adil Ahmed Rather alongside Dr Shaheena Shahid from Lucknow have been arrested in the case amid the recovery of 2900 kilograms of explosive material.
Shaheena was reportedly assigned by Masood Azhar’s sister Sadia Azhar to establish JeM’s women wing, Jamaat ul-Mominaat’s base in India and recruit new members. Meanwhile, Al-Falah University in Faridabad is also under probe after authorities unearthed a sizable explosives cache and apprehended multiple doctors connected to it.