Blasts were planned on Diwali and on Republic Day January 26! While Diwali plan failed, attempts were on to make January 26 blast successful. This explosive information has come to the fore after the interrogation of Muzammil, the prime accused in the Delhi blast case. During the interrogation, Dr Muzammil Ganaie, who was arrested in connection with a terror module operating from Faridabad, revealed that he and Dr Umar Nabi, also known as Dr Umar Mohammad, had conducted a recce of the Red Fort in the first week of January as part of a larger terror plot.
Assailants had planned to carry out the blast on Republic Day itself. And for that, they also did recce at the Red Fort. They also had the intention of carrying out explosions in crowded places on Diwali this year. But it could not be implemented.
Delhi Red Fort blast case
The Red Fort blast on a busy Monday evening came hours after eight people, including three doctors, were arrested and 2,900 kg of explosives seized with the uncovering of a “white collar” terror module involving the Jaish-e-Mohammed and Ansar Ghazwat-ul-Hind and spanning Kashmir, Haryana and Uttar Pradesh. Police sources say that Dr Umar was a member of a Jaish-e-Mohammed terrorist module, which also included Dr Muzammil and Dr Adil Ahmed Dar.
After the Delhi blast, high alert has been issued across the country. So far, 13 people have been reported dead. There is enhanced security at the blast site. Along with various places in Delhi, the army is also searching various places in Jammu and Kashmir.
Two cartridges, including a live ammunition, and samples of two different types of explosives are among more than 40 samples that have been collected by the Forensic Science Laboratory (FSL) team from the blast site near the Red Fort.
White Collar Terror Ecosystem
Ongoing investigation has revealed that several doctors from Al Falah University in Faridabad were mainly behind this sabotage. The Jammu and Kashmir Police is calling it a ‘white collar terror ecosystem’. The investigators are interrogating the arrested Muzammil. It has been learnt that terror funding was being organised under the guise of social and charitable work. Identifying potential attackers as radicals and collecting materials to make IEDs was being carried out in a well-planned manner.
Delhi blast leads to political firestorm
Questions are being raised how could such a big incident take place right under the nose of the Home Ministry in the national Capital? Opposition parties are pointing fingers at Home Minister Amit Shah and several leaders have demanded his resignation. The opposition has fiercely criticized the Home Ministry and Union Home Minister Amit Shah, alleging major security and intelligence failures. Multiple parties, including the Trinamool Congress (TMC), Congress, and Shiv Sena (UBT) faction, have explicitly demanded the resignation of Union Home Minister Amit Shah, citing his alleged “incompetence” and “failure” to protect the nation’s capital.
Leaders from Congress and Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) described the incident as a “total intelligence failure” and pointed to “serious lapses in security” in a high-security zone. They questioned how such an explosion could occur in the capital city, which is directly under the Home Ministry’s control.
The opposition accused the Home Minister of being preoccupied with state election campaigns (e.g., Bihar Assembly elections) and the Prime Minister of focusing on foreign visits (e.g., Bhutan trip) and “propaganda and optics” rather than national security and governance. TMC MP Mahua Moitra stated that India needs a “capable Home Minister not a full-time Hate Campaign Minister”.
Home Ministry in action
In the meantime, the Home Minister has vowed “strict action” and started working to find those involved in the attack. There is only one order, the culprits must be found at any cost. Later, he wrote on his X handle, Shah, ‘I chaired a review meeting on the Delhi car bomb blast. I met with top officials. I have instructed the officials to find every culprit involved behind this incident. This time they will see the wrath of our investigative agencies.’
He explicitly stated that all culprits behind the incident will be “hunted down” and “will not be spared”. Shah has instructed the Delhi Police, National Investigation Agency (NIA), National Security Guards (NSG), and forensic teams to conduct a comprehensive probe into the blast, exploring all possibilities. He held several security review meetings with top officials from various security and intelligence agencies to assess the situation and coordinate the investigation.