Red Fort blast: Jaish-e-Mohammed’s women’s wing, led by Sadiya Azhar, emerges as key player

Despite those losses, reports confirmed that Jaish has been quietly rebuilding its network with financial and logistical backing from Pakistan’s intelligence establishment. In August, it was reported that Jaish had resumed fund-raising and recruitment, using social media and religious propaganda with promises to “transform the world into a paradise.”

The ‘women’s wing’ and a new recruitment drive

As part of its revival, the terror group has reportedly launched a women’s wing called Jamat ul-Muminat. Sadiya Azhar has been placed in charge of the wing, alongside her sister Samaira Azhar. Both women are believed to conduct “online classes” of about 40 minutes each, designed to indoctrinate and recruit women into the terror outfit.

Unverified intelligence inputs cited by NDTV suggest that Sadiya has been instructed to target wives of Jaish commanders and women from economically vulnerable backgrounds, particularly those living near the group’s remaining training camps in Pakistan.

Indian investigators have reportedly identified two possible links connecting the Red Fort car bomb to the Jaish network, NDTV reported.

The first link points to the terror module that executed the attack. The second centres on Shaheena Shahid, a medical professional whose Maruti Suzuki Swift was found loaded with an assault rifle and ammunition. Shahid is believed to have been working with Dr Mujammil Shakeel, another medical practitioner affiliated with Al-Falah Hospital in Faridabad. Both were arrested Monday evening.

According to NDTV’s sources, Shahid may be the head of Jaish’s women’s wing in India and a key figure in the group’s recruitment and operational network.

The Red Fort explosion occurred just hours after Jammu and Kashmir Police launched a major inter-state anti-terror crackdown. During the operation, police arrested two medical professionals linked to Jaish. One was Dr Mujammil Shakeel, from whom nearly 3,000 kilograms of ammonium nitrate and other explosives were recovered in Faridabad. The second was Dr Adil Ahmed Rather, apprehended in Saharanpur, Uttar Pradesh.

Sources told NDTV that the blast was likely triggered prematurely by a third member of the Jaish module, Dr Umar Mohammed, who panicked after hearing about the arrests of his accomplices.

A disturbing new trend

The involvement of educated professionals, particularly doctors, marks what Indian intelligence officials describe as a disturbing new modus operandi for Jaish-e-Mohammed. Recruiting individuals from respected professions, they say, allows the group to operate under the radar while blending into civilian life.

Security officials have condemned Pakistan for continuing to provide safe haven, funding, and ideological backing to Jaish and its affiliates. Despite years of diplomatic pressure, Islamabad has failed to dismantle the group, allowing it to mutate and re-emerge in more covert forms.

A senior security source told NDTV that the Red Fort blast serves as grim proof that Pakistan’s terror infrastructure remains intact and active. “The same networks that trained Pulwama bombers and sheltered Masood Azhar are once again at work. This is not an accident — this is a continuation of Pakistan’s state-sponsored terrorism,” the source said.