Red Fort blast probe widens: NIA raids ‘Madam Surgeon’; Lucknow home searched

LUCKNOW: The National Investigation Agency (NIA) connected Monday widened its probe into a “white-collar” panic financing and radicalisation web linked to the November 10 car blast adjacent Delhi’s Red Fort, conducting coordinated searches crossed Jammu & Kashmir and Uttar Pradesh — including the Lucknow residence of erstwhile aesculapian assemblage module subordinate Dr Shaheen Shahid, present arrested and successful custody of NIA.

Lucknow search: household nether scannerIn Lucknow, NIA searched Shaheen’s Lalbagh residence wherever her begetter and 1 of her brothers proceed to live; different brother, besides a doctor, has been detained for questioning.

It is for the archetypal clip that NIA has conducted searches astatine residence of Dr Shaheen Shahid successful Lucknow.Shaheen was earlier arrested aft a Russian firearm and ammunition were recovered from a car registered successful her name, allegedly utilized by Muzammil.Investigators allege she funnelled Rs 27–28 lakh into the module, including Rs 6.5 lakh for weapons and Rs 3 lakh for a vehicle, though she claims the wealth was fixed arsenic zakat. Agencies besides asseverate she was the lone pistillate successful the Faridabad JeM module and was successful interaction with Afira Biwi, woman of Pulwama onslaught mastermind Umar Farooq, and had discussed a program to people six Indian cities connected December 6 arsenic “revenge for Babri Masjid”.

A topper turned panic accusedBorn and raised successful Kaiserbagh, the 46-year-old pharmacology specializer Shaheen besides known arsenic 'Madam Surgeon' had an impeccable world tally — topping her Class 10 and 12 boards, completing MBBS and MD from the authorities aesculapian assemblage successful Prayagraj, and securing a UPPSC fertile to articulation GSVM Medical College, Kanpur, arsenic an adjunct prof successful 2006.Her trajectory reportedly plunged aft 2013, erstwhile she abruptly stopped reporting for duty.

All authoritative connection failed, and she was terminated successful 2021. During these undocumented years, investigators assertion she drifted toward extremist elements portion associated with Al-Falah University, wherever she allegedly grew adjacent to Dr Muzammil, suspected Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM) operative whom she joined successful 2023.Dr Shaheen Shahid was allegedly heading the India helping of Jamaat-ul-Mominaat which is the women's helping of Jaish-e-Muhammad.NIA teams carried retired searches astatine 8 locations successful Pulwama, Shopian and Kulgam. In Shopian, officers raided the location of Maulvi Irfan Ahmad Vagay, who has emerged arsenic the alleged mastermind liable for radicalisation and recruitment successful the network. Vagay is presently nether NIA custody successful transportation with the Red Fort blast that killed 15 people.In Pulwama, searches were conducted successful Koil, Chandgam, Malangpora and Sambura, each linked to suspects connected to the Delhi blast.Simultaneously, NIA searched the residence of Dr Aadil Ahmad Rather successful Saharanpur, arrested earlier this month, arsenic portion of efforts to representation the fiscal and operational web of the module.A white-collar panic modelOfficials picture the web arsenic a caller breed of “white-collar” panic module — educated professionals who rise funds done fiscal fraud, laundering and legitimate-looking transactions, making detection acold much complex.With raids present stretching from Kashmir to Uttar Pradesh, investigators accidental the absorption is connected identifying the module’s handlers, mapping the funnel of funds, and establishing however radicalisation and operational readying were executed by individuals with nonrecreational backgrounds.The raids travel aft a Delhi tribunal connected Saturday extended the National Investigation Agency (NIA) custody of 4 accused, including Dr Shaheen Shahid, Dr Muzammil Shakeel, Mufti Irfan Ahmad Wagay, and Dr Adeel Ahmed Rather successful the Delhi blast lawsuit for different 10 days aft it sought much clip for investigation.Even earlier the blast, respective arrests had been made crossed aggregate states, and investigators had begun to portion unneurotic grounds of an interstate panic module.Following the explosion, the NIA recovered that the incidental was connected to earlier arrests, starring to a bid of caller revelations arsenic the probe deepened.The NIA has truthful acold arrested 7 individuals successful transportation with the blast involving a Hyundai i20 driven by Dr Umar Muhammad, which exploded adjacent the Lal Qila Metro station.