Planned Pulwama model terrorist attack, arrest of one in team destroyed everything

NEW DELHI: Intelligence sources said the terrorists had planned a Pulwama-style attack in Kashmir. They also said that the car blast near the Red Fort was the last attempt of the terrorists. The arrest of one of the terrorists' group failed their plans. With this, the national capital was targeted, said the intelligence agency.

13 people were killed and many others were injured in a car explosion near the Red Fort Metro station on Monday evening. Dr Umar Nabi (bomber), Maulvi Irfan (priest), doctors Aadil Rather, Musammil Shakeel and a woman were behind the blast. It is suspected that Dr Umar was driving the car that exploded. He died in the blast.

The woman, also Musammil's girlfriend, provided financial support. Aadil's brother Muzaffar, who had crossed into Afghanistan, and Amir, who bought the car used for the blast, were also involved in the bombing. It is reported that there were three people in the group including Ukasa and Hashim. Ukasa and another unnamed person are Kashmiris but are said to be living in Afghanistan. There are also indications that Hashim is in Pakistan or Afghanistan.

When Musammil, Muzaffar and Umar went to Turkey in 2022, Ukasa arranged accommodation for them. They tried to go to Afghanistan but failed. A Syrian refugee was also in contact with them. When the phone data was checked, it was found that the priest's phone calls were linked to Afghanistan for the last two months. Muzaffar's phone data proves that he has links to Pakistan and Afghanistan.

They initially aimed to carry out a Pulwama-style attack in Kashmir using a car loaded with explosives and fuel. However, the arrest of one of the key links, Musammil, thwarted the plan. With this, Umar targeted Red Fort with a blast.

Just before the Delhi attack, a large cache of explosives and weapons was seized from Faridabad in Haryana. With this, information about the white-collar terror network operating in various states was revealed. Following this, seven including two doctors were arrested. There were more arrests from Uttar Pradesh, Indore and Kashmir. However, intelligence sources added that the group was not mentally prepared to carry out such a large-scale attack and their targets were bigger than they could handle.