| NIA achieves major breakthrough, arrests key conspirator linked to suicide bomber | | Red Fort Blast | | SANJAY PANDITA
Early Times Report
Jammu, Nov 16: In a significant development in the probe into the devastating car bomb explosion near Delhi’s iconic Red Fort, the National Investigation Agency (NIA) has arrested Amir Rashid Ali, a Kashmiri resident accused of conspiring with the suicide bomber behind the attack that claimed 13 lives and injured more than 25 others.
The blast, which rocked the bustling Red Fort area on November 10, has been officially classified as a terror incident, with authorities invoking stringent anti-terrorism laws and attributing it to anti-national forces.
The explosion, triggered by a vehicle-borne improvised explosive device (VBIED), sent shockwaves through the national capital, prompting heightened security measures and the temporary closure of the nearby Red Fort Metro Station, which has since reopened.
According to NIA sources, Ali, a resident of Samboora in Pampore, Jammu and Kashmir, was apprehended in Delhi following an extensive search operation. The vehicle used in the attack—a white sedan packed with explosives—was registered in his name. Investigations reveal that Ali travelled to the capital specifically to facilitate the purchase of the car, which he then handed over to the bomber for the deadly mission.
Forensic analysis by the NIA has conclusively identified the deceased driver as Dr. Umar Un Nabi, a 38-year-old resident of Pulwama district in Jammu and Kashmir. Shockingly, Umar Nabi doubled as an Assistant Professor in the General Medicine Department at Al-Falah University in Faridabad, Haryana, highlighting concerns over radicalization within professional circles. “This case underscores the insidious nature of terror networks infiltrating everyday society, including academia,” an NIA official remarked anonymously, pointing to emerging leads suggesting Umar Nabi was part of a broader syndicate of educated professionals allegedly involved in similar plots—a phenomenon investigators have dubbed “doctors with bombs.”
In a related development, the agency seized a second vehicle owned by Umar Nabi, which is undergoing rigorous forensic scrutiny for traces of explosives or communication devices. So far, the NIA has recorded statements from 73 witnesses, including survivors of the blast and eyewitnesses who described the chaotic scene of twisted metal and panic in one of Delhi’s oldest markets.
The arrest marks the first major breakthrough since the NIA took over the case (RC-21/2025/NIA/DLI) from Delhi Police, amid suspicions of a larger conspiracy spanning multiple states. Preliminary probes indicate the Delhi bombing was merely one thread in an expansive terror blueprint, potentially linked to cross-border handlers. To unravel this web, the NIA is conducting coordinated raids at six locations across Delhi, Jammu and Kashmir, Haryana, and Uttar Pradesh, working in tandem with local police forces and intelligence agencies.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Home Minister Amit Shah have been briefed on the unfolding investigation, with Shah emphasizing a “zero-tolerance” stance against terrorism during a high-level security review earlier this week.
As the probe intensifies, security has been beefed up around key monuments and markets in Delhi, with authorities appealing to the public for any leads on suspicious activities. The NIA vows to leave no stone unturned in identifying and dismantling the full network behind this brazen assault on India’s heart. |
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