Red Fort blast probe widens as NIA nabs car owner who aided suicide attacker

Visuals from the Red Fort blast site

The National Investigation Agency (NIA) on Sunday announced a major breakthrough in the Red Fort area car bomb blast case with the arrest of a Kashmiri resident accused of helping orchestrate the deadly attack that killed 13 people and injured 32 others in the heart of the national capital.

According to a press release, the agency identified the arrested man as Amir Rashid Ali, in whose name the car used in the explosion was registered. Ali was taken into custody from Delhi after the NIA launched an intensive search operation upon taking over the case from the Delhi Police.

According to the NIA’s findings, Ali, a resident of Samboora in Pampore, Jammu and Kashmir, had conspired with the alleged suicide bomber, Umar Un Nabi, to execute the terror plot. Investigators said Amir travelled to Delhi to help purchase the vehicle that was later rigged with an Improvised Explosive Device (IED) and detonated near the Red Fort on 10 November.

Forensic analysis has confirmed the identity of the deceased driver of the vehicle-borne IED as Umar Un Nabi, a resident of Pulwama district and an Assistant Professor in the General Medicine Department at Al Falah University in Faridabad.

The NIA also seized another vehicle belonging to Nabi, which is currently undergoing forensic examination. So far, the agency has examined 73 witnesses, including survivors of the blast.

The NIA said the arrest is a crucial step towards unravelling the wider network behind the bombing. Investigators are pursuing multiple leads to identify additional conspirators.

The agency is working in coordination with Delhi Police, Jammu & Kashmir Police, Haryana Police, Uttar Pradesh Police and other partner agencies as part of a multi-state probe into the attack.