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Mecca Masjid-Ajmer blast link found

Intelligence agencies have found a link between the May 18 Mecca Masjid blast in Hyderabad and the terrorist attack at the Ajmer shrine, reports Tushar Srivastava.

Updated on: Oct 13, 2007, 03:43:03 IST
Hindustan Times | By , New Delhi
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Intelligence agencies have found a link between the May 18 Mecca Masjid blast in Hyderabad and the terrorist attack at the Ajmer shrine on Thursday, which conclusively establishes the involvement of the same group behind the two blasts.

HT Image
HT Image

The SIM card recovered from the unexploded bomb at Mecca Masjid had been bought by militants in the fake name of Babu Lal Yadav from Kolkata. It was later revealed, as first reported by HT on July 30, that the photograph was of Dr Tarak Nath, a yoga teacher working in a Noida college. This photo had been used by militants to purchase the SIM card.

Investigations into the Ajmer blasts have revealed that the SIM recovered from the unexploded bomb was also bought in the name of Babu Lal Yadav using the photograph of Dr Tarak Nath.

In this case too, as in that of Mecca Masjid, the SIM had been bought from Kolkata and the buyer had given a false address. Investigations have further revealed that it is a Hutch number, which was deactivated after it was revealed that the address given was false.

“Using Nath’s photograph, a forged driving license had been prepared by the terrorists, which had been subsequently used to buy Sim cards. An

application had also been attached along with his photograph, which gave his name as Babu Lal Yadav,” an official said.

“This has conclusively established that the same militant group is behind both the terror attacks,” a senior intelligence official said.

Sources said a number of SIM cards had been bought from Kolkata using Dr Nath’s photo.

Intelligence agencies have said that the militant outfit Harkat-ul-Jehad-e-Islami (HuJI) was behind the Mecca Masjid blast.

Mobile phones had been used in both Ajmer and Mecca Masjid blasts as the triggering device.

“The cell phone had been attached to the explosive. An alarm clock would have acted as the trigger. The moment the alarm went off, it would have triggered the explosive, completing the circuit,” sources said.

Since the SIM was used only for the alarm clock to work, it did not matter whether or not it was deactivated.

Sources said a copy of a South Indian language daily had been recovered from the blast spot and the explosives had been wrapped in it.

  • Tushar Srivastava
    ABOUT THE AUTHOR
    Tushar Srivastava

    Tushar was part of Hindustan Times’ nationwide network of correspondents that brings news, analysis and information to its readers. He no longer works with the Hindustan Times.

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