New Delhi: A Delhi court on Friday extended the National Investigation Agency (NIA) custody of Dr Bilal Naseer Malla by seven days in connection with the Red Fort blast case, while another accused, Soyab, was sent to judicial custody for five days.
The NIA produced both accused before the Patiala House Court amid tight security after the completion of their earlier four-day NIA custody, which had been granted on December 15. Media personnel were not allowed to cover the proceedings.
The matter was heard by Principal and Sessions Judge Anju Bajaj Chandna, who allowed the NIA’s plea seeking further custodial interrogation of Dr Naseer. Accordingly, his NIA custody was extended for seven more days. The court, however, remanded Soyab, a resident of Dhauj in Haryana’s Faridabad district, to judicial custody till December 24.
Earlier, the NIA informed the court that Soyab was arrested for allegedly harbouring Red Fort bomber Umar-un-Nabi and providing him logistical support before the terror attack in Delhi. Dr Bilal Naseer Malla, who was arrested in Delhi on December 9, has been described by the agency as a key conspirator in the case.
According to the investigation, Dr Naseer had knowingly sheltered Umar-un-Nabi, facilitated his movements, and was also involved in destroying evidence linked to the blast. The agency said his custodial interrogation is crucial to unravel the wider conspiracy.
So far, the NIA has arrested nine accused in the case, including doctors Dr Muzammil Ganaie, Dr Adeel Rather, Dr Shaheen Sayeed, and religious preacher Maulvi Irfan. Two others, Amir Rashid Ali and Jasir Bilal Wani alias Danish, have also been taken into custody.
On December 18, the agency arrested the ninth accused, Yasir Ahmad Dar, a resident of Jammu and Kashmir and an alleged close associate of Umar-un-Nabi. The NIA claimed that Dar was an active participant in the conspiracy and had allegedly taken an oath to carry out self-sacrificial operations.
The blast took place on November 10 when an explosive-laden Hyundai i20 car, driven by Umar-un-Nabi, detonated outside the Red Fort, prompting a high-level investigation due to the serious security implications of the attack.
