Security personnel cordon off an area near Red Fort after a blast on Monday that claimed the lives of 12 people and injured several, in New Delhi.
Credit: PTI Photo
Kanpur: The Uttar Pradesh Anti-Terrorism Squad has detained a medical student from Kanpur as part of its investigation into the recent Delhi blast, officials said on Thursday.
Dr Mohammad Arif (32), a first-year Doctor of Medicine (Cardiology) student at the state-run Ganesh Shankar Vidyarthi Memorial (GSVM) Medical College, was taken into custody from an undisclosed location, a senior official told PTI.
An Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS) team searched his rented accommodation at Ashok Nagar in Nazirabad, seized his mobile phone and laptop for forensic examination, and took him to Delhi for questioning.
"He is likely to be confronted with those already arrested in the case," the official added.
Arif, a native of Anantnag in Jammu and Kashmir, came under the ATS radar following disclosures made during the interrogation of former GSVM professor Dr Shaheen Sayeed, who had earlier been arrested in the same case. Investigators suspect that Arif was in regular contact with Dr Shaheen and her brother Dr Parvez, both of whom have been questioned extensively.
Sources said that on the day of the explosion near Delhi's Red Fort, Arif was in telephonic contact with individuals allegedly linked to Dr Shaheen's network. He had also visited Jammu and Kashmir recently, which raised further suspicion. When ATS personnel reached his residence, he allegedly attempted to delete data from his phone but officials seized the device in time.
Preliminary analysis of his call records and chats is said to have indicated communication with the alleged mastermind and other suspects. Investigators believe the group used a shared e-mail ID to exchange draft messages, a method often employed by terror outfits to avoid electronic surveillance.
The development has caused unease among doctors and students at GSVM Medical College, particularly in the Cardiology Department, where Arif had joined only three months ago.
Confirming this, Chief Medical Superintendent (Cardiology) Dr Gyanendra said, "Dr Arif joined here three months ago through All India counselling. He was on duty on Wednesday afternoon and later went to his accommodation outside campus. Around 7 pm, we were informed that he has been taken for questioning. He was from Kashmir and lived off-campus. He used to come, work quietly and leave."
Dr Gyanendra said that the screening of all first, second and third-year cardiology students has been initiated as a precautionary measure.
Arif's landlord Kanhaiya Lal said he has been staying on rent for about a month with another doctor, Abhishek, on the second floor of his house. "Around 7.30 pm, a four-member team came straight to his room. They already had the keys, searched the entire portion, locked it again, and left quietly," Lal told reporters.
He said Arif had submitted his ID before renting the room but he never noticed any suspicious activity or unusual visitors.
A top police official, requesting anonymity, confirmed that Arif was detained in Kanpur and later handed over to central investigating agencies for further interrogation.
Kanpur Police Commissioner Raghubir Lal told PTI that he has received information about the detention and has sent a team to verify the reports.
"We are checking the facts. I will comment only after confirmation," he said, neither confirming nor denying the detention.
Meanwhile, ATS and National Investigation Agency teams are continuing operations in Kanpur to trace any additional links to Dr Shaheen's network.
Officials hinted that more names may surface as the probe progresses.