Bhopal-Ujjain train blast: Former IAF man among two held, police call him ‘motivator’ of terror group

Khan often visited the house in Haji Colony where Saifullah was gunned down Wednesday. Investigators said Khan, in fact, rented a house for a short period in the same colony to help the group. Khan’s son Kadir Mohammad said: “My father was in the Air Force and had taken VRS a long time ago. Since then, he had been regularly  changing his business. He started dealing in property recently. I last met my father two days ago in Lucknow. We went to our ancestral house in Rae Bareli district and from there, my father left for another place. If my father is involved in anti-national activities, then the police and court should take action against him. If he is innocent, then he should not be harassed.”

Kadir, his wife, children and mother Zahida Begum live in Jajmau in Kanpur. Kadir used to run a shoe shop in Lucknow. The family of Azhar have left home. On Tuesday, when police attempted to arrest Azhar at the Rehmani Market in Kanpur, a crowd surrounded the policemen who were in plain clothes. Azhar managed to slip away but was arrested Thursday. Officials said Azhar met Islamic preacher Mufti Abdus Sami alias Samiullah in 2015 after listening to his speech at Budhana near Muzaffarnagar in which he backed the caliphate of Islamic State (IS) and its actions. He was “inspired” by Sami’s speech.

From Rampur, Sami later shifted base to Delhi. He was arrested by NIA last year for his alleged role in inciting youths by giving provocative speeches and supporting the Islamic State. Sami advised youths to go to Syria for jihad since it cannot be replicated in India, claimed officials citing his statements. While the National Investigation Agency (NIA) is yet to formally take over the probe, the initial questioning of the arrested suspects revealed that the group finalised their plan to trigger an explosion inside a moving train on March 3, four days before the incident. The meeting took place at the same house where Saifullah was shot dead, officials said.

According to forensic experts, potassium chlorate mixed with gun powder was used for the IED on the train. “A final report is awaited but these chemicals are readily available and commonly used in fire crackers,” a senior official said. NIA Director General Sharad Kumar told The Indian Express, “We will study if there are similarities between the recent incidents of train sabotage and the explosion.” Investigators said the group had been active for the last six months and had been using Telegram to communicate with each other.