Nearly two weeks have elapsed since the devastating explosion near Delhi’s historic Red Fort that killed at least 10 people and injured several others.
The ongoing investigation into the blast, which came in the wake of a massive recovery of explosives from Dauj village in Haryana’s Faridabad district, has led security agencies to multiple individuals and entities believed to be part of what authorities are now describing as the “white collar terror module”.
The probe has also placed Faridabad’s Al Falah University and its owner under intense scrutiny, as several individuals linked to the Red Fort blast—including Dr Umar Un Nabi, who allegedly drove the vehicle carrying the explosives—were associated with the university’s medical college as faculty members.
In a separate but related incident tied to the same white collar terror module, nine people lost their lives last week at the Nowgam Police Station in Jammu and Kashmir when explosives recovered from Faridabad accidentally detonated during the process of sample collection by forensic experts and police officials.
Here are the key revelations from the Delhi blast case:
The five doctors accused in connection with the white collar terror module had reportedly collected ₹26 lakh to fund the planned terror strikes. One of the main accused, Dr Muzammil Ganaie, told the National Investigation Agency (NIA) that the group took nearly two years to procure explosives and remote-triggering devices.
To date, three doctors—Dr Muzammil Ganaie, Shaheen Shahid, and Adeel Rather—have been arrested. Rather’s brother Muzaffar, suspected of being part of the network, is believed to be in Afghanistan. Authorities are also searching for Nissar ul-Hassan, who worked at Al Falah Medical College alongside Dr Umar Un Nabi, Dr Ganaie, and Dr Shahid.
Al Falah University has long-standing links with terror operatives. Indian Mujahideen fugitive Mirza Shadab Baig, wanted for a series of bomb blasts in 2008, was a former student of the Faridabad-based university, where he completed his B.Tech in electronics and instrumentation in 2007. He carries a reward of ₹1 lakh on his head.
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The recent Delhi blast has renewed focus on the missing IM operative after investigators uncovered fresh connections between Baig and the Red Fort blast case. Senior officials have stated that a link between the two incidents, separated by nearly two decades, cannot be ruled out.
The founder of Al Falah University is under scrutiny by investigating authorities for money laundering. The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has alleged that he generated over ₹415 crore through dishonestly obtained funds. The probe agency claims that the founder and the Al Falah charitable trust trust generated these funds as proceeds of crime by misleading students and parents with false claims of NAAC accreditation and UGC recognition.
The university has also received a show-cause notice from the National Commission for Minority Educational Institutions regarding its minority status, following a notice from the National Assessment and Accreditation Council on 12 November concerning accreditation-related claims. The university has been directed to explain why its minority status should not be revoked after two suspects in the Red Fort blast were found linked to the institution. The commission has summoned the university registrar and the Principal Secretary of the Haryana education department for a hearing on December 4.
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