Three al Qaeda 'sympathisers' held in Madurai

Confess to role in court blasts: NIA

The NIA on Monday arrested three people suspected to be part of a group sympathising with the al Qaeda, and involved in five blast cases in the court premises of Kerala, Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka since April.

Swooping down on various locations, the NIA with the help of the Tamil Nadu and Telangana Police apprehended four youths for their involvement in the blasts at court complexes.

“During a sustained examination, three of the four confessed to their involvement in these blasts,” NIA spokesman said, adding three of them have been placed under arrest, while the fourth was still being questioned.

The five cases relate to blasts inside a vehicle at a parking space at the district court complex, in Chittoor, Andhra Pradesh, on April 7; in the parking area of the CJM Court complex at Kollam in Kerala on June 15; inside the court complex at Mysuru on August 1; in Nellore of Andhra Pradesh on September 12; and inside a toilet complex of the judicial court in Kerala’s Malappuram on November 1.

Those arrested are Abbas Ali (27) and Samsum Karim Raja, both residents of Madurai, and  Suleiman (23) of Chennai.

Ali has studied up to Class VIII and worked as a painter. He also ran a library called Darul Ilm in Madurai. Suleiman was working in a software firm and was the leader of the terrorist gang. Raja is a commerce graduate and runs a poultry shop at Kannimara Koil street in Madurai.