Narendra Modi`s Patna rally blasts: NIA arrests two more, eight apprehended till now

Zee Media Bureau New Delhi: The National Investigation Agency (NIA) on Tuesday arrested two more persons in connection with the blasts at Bharatiya Janata Party`s (BJP) prime ministerial candidate Narendra Modi`s `Hunkar` rally in Patna. Low intensity blasts rocked capital city of Bihar last year on October 27, shortly before Modi was going to address a rally in Gandhi Maidain ahead of the upcoming General Elections. Five blasts were triggered in the venue of rally and two had gone off outside. Eight people, including a militant of Indian Mujahideen, were killed and over dozens injured. NIA, which was handed over the case, has been carrying out the probe into the case and with the help Intelligence Bureau, had nabbed Yasin Bhatkal who had named the main culprits behind the incident. NIA was working closely with the central snooping agency and tracking the mobile details of the arrested accused against whom suspicion increased because of transfer of large sums of money. Yesterday, two people were arrested in the same case from Mirzapur in Uttar Pradesh. With today`s arrest, the number of people apprehended by the probe agency has gone upto eight. Based on interrogation of Ahmad Hussain and Farkruddin, who were arrested by NIA from Mirzapur, two more people Anil Pandey and Mohammed Raju were arrested from the same area. NIA alleged Raju, a resident of Barkachha, had purchased explosives from Pandey, who resides in Allahabad, the sources said. All the four were taken on a transit remand today to be produced before NIA court in Patna tomorrow. Additional civil judge , Rakesh Kumar Singh granted transit remand to the four who would now be produced before a Patna court tomorrow , sources said. NIA had yesterday arrested two persons identified as Fakhruddin and Ahmed from Imambara and Chota Mirzapur localities and on their information arrested two others Mohammad Raju and Anil Pandey , sources said. According to police sources, for the past four months intelligence agencies had been keeping an eye on these people and after getting their call details and finding that large sums had been deposited in their bank accounts. Sources said material used in making bombs and documents were recovered from the house of one of the arrested. Earlier, four people, including Mohammed Imtiyaz Ansari who was apprehended by the public when he, along with another IM accused, was assembling bombs inside a toilet at a makeshift railway station in Patna, were arrested by NIA. A cash reward of up to Rs 10 lakh for information leading to arrest of five absconding accused of banned Indian Mujahideen terror group including TahseenAkhtar in Bodh Gaya and Patna serial blasts cases has also been announced. Besides Akhtar alias `Monu`, a resident of Bihar, others named by NIA were Haider Ali alias Abdullah, Numan Ansari, Taufeeq Ansari and Mojibullah, all residents of Jharkhand. The five operatives of Indian Mujahideen were wanted for their alleged involvement in the planning and commission of terrorist acts including the July 7 Bodh Gaya blasts and October 27 Patna blasts.

While Akhtar, who has virtually taken over India operations of Indian Mujahideen after the arrest of Yaseen Bhatkal, is wanted in connection with the Hyderabad blasts also, Ali is also sought by the agency in another case related to the role of the terror outfit including its finances. While five monks were injured in Bodh Gaya blasts, eight people died in Patna blasts during Modi`s rally. With PTI inputs