Darbhanga blast: Two held in UP, NIA team visits site

DARBHANGA/PATNA A team of National Investigation Agency (NIA) on Friday reached Darbhanga in connection with the June 17 blast at the railway station here even as the Uttar Pradesh police arrested two persons from Kairana in Shamli district in the case, officials familiar with the case said

DARBHANGA/PATNA

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A team of National Investigation Agency (NIA) on Friday reached Darbhanga in connection with the June 17 blast at the railway station here even as the Uttar Pradesh police arrested two persons from Kairana in Shamli district in the case, officials familiar with the case said.

No one was injured in the blast that took place in a consignment of clothes, which was booked from Secunderabad on June 15.

The two arrested have been identified as Mohammad Haji Salim Kashim and his son Mohammad Kafil.

Ashok Kumar Singh, superintendent Government Railway Police (GRP) at Muzaffarpur, which has been probing the case, said the parcel caught fire after the explosion but no casualty or damage to property was reported.

The parcel did not contain name and details of the sender while the addressee was named as Mohammed Sufiyan. Police have been treating Sufiyan as a suspect in the case since he did not show up to collect the parcel, which contained clothes and a sealed vial that is now believed to have triggered the explosion.

Sources in Bihar’s Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS), which has since joined the probe, said at least four suspects had been detained from different locations, but declined to share details saying it could hamper the investigation.

“There is a hint of terror connection in the case. A joint report of Bihar and Telangana ATS is expected to be sent to the Union Home ministry today. We believe the case will soon be transferred to NIA,” said an official of Bihar home department, requesting anonymity.

Earlier, the GRP team had gone to Secunderabad and examined CCTV footages from railway station there, which reportedly showed four men getting down from a vehicle carrying a packet which looked quite similar to the one that exploded at Darbhanga railway station.

Meanwhile, the NIA team led by a superintendent of police met senior police officers to review the probe. They also inspected the blast site.

A senior GRP official said that NIA team will also meet investigating officer in the case and Darbhanga GRP officer-in-charge Harun Rashid, who returned from Secunderabad on Friday.

“The probe will now be formally handed over to the NIA and the railway police will provide assistance to them,” said a senior GRP official.

A few years ago, a Darbhanga native was arrested for his alleged links with the proscribed outfit Indian Mujahideen (IM).

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