Red Fort blast probe: Five more detained, including two doctors linked to Al-Falah University

LUCKNOW/KANPUR/ young new delhi: Investigators detained at to the lowest degree 5 sir thomas more people, including two doctors and two staffers of Al-Falah University in Faridabad, and launched a hunt for another doctor who visited Turkey with two other suspects, as part their nationwide investigation into an alleged terror module behind Monday’s deadly blast near Red Fort in Delhi.The latest detentions include two doctors in Uttar Pradesh – cardiologist Dr Mohammad Arif Mir, 32, from Kanpur, and Dr Farukh, a gynecologist from GS Medical College, Hapur – both originally from Jammu and Kashmir. The state’s Anti-Terror Squad (ATS) confirmed that both were picked up on suspicion of links to Dr Shaheen Shahid, the Lucknow-origin doctor arrested from Faridabad earlier this month.According to ATS officials, Dr Mir was detained late Wednesday night from the Cardiology Institute of GSVM Medical College, Kanpur, while Dr Farukh was picked up on Thursday afternoon from his hostel in Hapur. They were later handed over to the National Investigation Agency (NIA) and shifted to Delhi for interrogation. “We only came to know that the ATS had taken Dr Arif for questioning. Beyond that, we have no information,” said Dr Umeshwar Pandey, head of the cardiology department in Kanpur. GS Medical College director Dr Manoj Shishodia confirmed that a police team had arrived to question Dr Farukh before taking him along.Preliminary investigations suggest that Dr Mir, who hails from Anantnag, was likely connected to Dr Umar Un Nabi, the man who drove the car that exploded near the Red Fort, through a medical college in Kashmir. Officials said Dr Mir and Dr Shahid had been in frequent contact for several months, though investigators are still trying to determine the nature of their contact.Also Read | Delhi blast: Gaps in Umar’s last drive under scrutinyDr Farukh, meanwhile, studied with Dr Muzammil Shakeel Ganaie, who was arrested from Faridabad as part of a raid that found explosive material stored in a room he had rented. A police team later searched Dr Mir’s rented flat in Kanpur and seized his laptop and mobile phone for forensic analysis. His landlord, Kanhaiya Lal, told investigators that Mir had moved in barely a month ago and “kept entirely to himself.”Investigators said the connection threads back to a common network of Kashmir-origin medical professionals allegedly drawn into the fold of a covert “white-collar” terror module using academic and institutional covers.Also Read | ‘Won’t dare to even think': Amit Shah's warning to Delhi blast perpetratorsAmong the five detained Thursday, the third – Mohammad Jamil alias Zameel, a staffer at Al-Falah University – was picked up by NIA for allegedly facilitating the recruitment of Kashmiri doctors into the university. Investigators said Jamil handled parts of the institution’s hiring process and was responsible for forwarding verification and approval files for new faculty appointments.“His name came up after we found that several doctors hired at the university such as Dr Muzammil had previously faced scrutiny or dismissal at other institutions,” said an officer. “We are investigating whether these appointments were made under external influence or bypassed standard checks.”Jamil’s phone and laptop have been seized for forensic examination. Cyber teams reportedly found encrypted messages and coded entries suggesting communication with individuals connected to the accused network.Two others detained Thursday – Wasid Khan, a compounder at Al-Falah University, and his brother-in-law Mohammad Faheem – were picked up from Faridabad after investigators found the red Ford EcoSport registered under Dr Umar’s name parked outside Faheem’s residence in Khandawali village. Police believe Wasid had driven the car there on Umar’s instructions before abandoning it.Brother of doctor suspect under lensMeanwhile, an officer with Delhi Police’s Special Cell on Thursday said they have identified one more doctor, Muzaffar Ahmad Rather, who had visited Turkey with Nabi and Ganaie. Investigators said they have linked him to the Red Fort car blast, but the paediatrician had left for Dubai in August. Officials in Jammu and Kashmir said they have initiated the process to bring him back.The officer said, Muzaffar Rather is the elder brother of Dr Adeel Ahmad Rather (31), who was arrested from Sharanpur in Uttar Pradesh in connection with JeM posters appearing in Nowgam in Kashmir on October 18. The Rathers hail from Anatnag in Jammu and Kashmir.“His name also came up during the probe. We found out that he, Nabi and Ganaie visited Turkey together in 2022. They stayed there for 21 days and it has been found that they met JeM handlers there,” said the special cell officer.Another officer said, “We started looking for him but it has come to our notice that he left for Dubai in August. Now, it’s not confirmed if he is still there or travelled to Afghanistan. We know that in 2021-22, he and the group had attempted to travel to Afghanistan for some work. We think he could be still in Dubai as he was trying to get more funding”With inputs from bureaus in Faridabad and Srinagar