Cops probe Pune blast, Aurangabad RDX cache link

The ATS seized 43 kg RDX besides 16 AK-47 assault rifles, believed to have originated from Afghanistan, 50 Chinese hand grenades and over 3,200 rounds of ammunition in 2006. However, some parts of the consignment could not be seized as the culprits managed to slip away from the ATS clutches at that time.

Mirza Himayat Baig of Udgir (Latur), one of the two people arrested Wednesday in Pune's German Bakery blast case, in which 17 people were killed, was part of the Aurangabad arms smuggling. He has a criminal history and figures in the Pune police records.

Baig, along with Shaikh Lalbaba Ahmed Hussain Farid alias Bilal of Nashik, was nabbed in connection with the Pune explosion. The investigators are now attempting to ascertain whether the RDX used in the Pune blast as well as the two kilogram RDX seized from the duo Wednesday, was part of the missing consignment in the Aurangabad arms and explosives case.

After the Pune explosion, forensic reports indicated that there were similarities in the various blasts that rocked Maharashtra during in the past five years. These included the July 11, 2006 Mumbai suburban trains serial blasts, the Malegaon blast of Sep 8, 2006 and later the Pune blast of Feb 13, 2010 - all investigated by the ATS.  Later, the Malegaon blast probe was handed over to the Central Bureau of Investigation.