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Red Fort blast probe: Doctors raised ₹26L, finds NIA
Ganaie also admitted to procuring 26 quintals of NPK fertiliser from Gurugram and Nuh for approximately ₹3 lakh.
One of the key accused in the white-collar terror module case, Muzammil Ganaie, has purportedly detailed to National Investigation Agency (NIA) investigators how a ₹26 lakh fund was raised among five doctors to finance a conspiracy to execute coordinated terror strikes across multiple cities. The questioning has revealed that the network spent nearly two years procuring explosives and remote-triggering devices.
According to officers familiar with the interrogation, Ganaie admitted he contributed ₹5 lakh to the fund, while Adeel Ahmad Rather and Muzaffar Ahmad Rather allegedly provided ₹8 lakh and ₹6 lakh respectively. Shaheen Shahid is said to have funded ₹5 lakh, with Dr Umar Un-Nabi Mohammad adding ₹2 lakh. The entire pool was handed over to Umar, indicating his central role in the execution phase, the official said.
Ganaie also admitted to procuring 26 quintals of NPK fertiliser from Gurugram and Nuh for approximately ₹3 lakh. “He was responsible for sourcing fertiliser and other precursor chemicals. They were not building explosives overnight — this operation was being prepared meticulously,” an NIA official said, asking not to be named.
The fertiliser was allegedly converted into explosive material under the supervision of Umar un-Nabi, who also arranged remote detonators and circuitry for the devices. Investigators said ammonium nitrate and urea were also stockpiled. “There was a clear division of responsibilities. Umar was handling the technical part of the operation,” the officer said.
So far, three doctors — Ganaie, Shahid and Adeel Rather — have been arrested in the case. Rather’s brother Muzaffar, who investigators suspect is part of the network, is believed to be in Afghanistan. Authorities are also searching for Nissar ul-Hassan, who worked at Al Falah alongside Umar un-Nabi, Ganaie and Shahid. Police have questioned several other doctors.
Umar was behind the wheels of the Hyundai i20 when he detonated a cache of the explosives outside Red Fort on November 10, having narrowly escaped the law enforcement dragnet that closed in on the module based largely in Faridabad.
The financial investigation has traced ₹26 lakh in cash raised to sustain the conspiracy. Ganaie contributed ₹5 lakh, while Adeel Rather and Muzaffar Ahmad Rather allegedly provided ₹8 lakh and ₹6 lakh respectively. Shaheen Shahid is said to have funded ₹5 lakh, with Umar adding ₹2 lakh. The entire pool was handed over to Umar, indicating his central role in the execution phase, the official said.
Another NIA officer said the purported confession has helped link previously scattered leads on procurement, storage and financial transfers. “The scale of recovered materials has reinforced suspicions of a plan to carry out serial blasts rather than a one-off strike. The quantity they amassed cannot be dismissed as preparation for a single explosion,” he said.
To be sure, a confession holds in a court of law when made in front of a magistrate or a court.
Officials are now focusing on identifying upstream suppliers and verifying whether professional credentials were misused to bypass enforcement. “It appears to be a deeply embedded network operating with academic cover and commercial camouflage. The aim now is to uncover every node before any part of this machinery can be revived,” the second officer said.
