The Central government on Thursday ordered a National Investigation Agency (NIA) probe into the 23 October Coimbatore LPG cylinder explosion in a car. The NIA will look into the possibility of cross-state issues and the international angle into the matter.
Immediately after the order the NIA registered a case. “We have re-registered an FIR after taking over the investigation in the Coimbatore blast case from state police,” a top NIA official said.
The Counter-Terrorism and Counter Radicalization (CTCR) division of the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) issued the order a day after Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M.K. Stalin recommended a NIA probe in the case.
Stalin, in a recommendation letter, to the MHA had requested on Wednesday to transfer the investigation of the case related to the car cylinder explosion in the Ukkadam area in Coimbatore to the NIA and directed police to ensure security in Coimbatore.
Tamil Nadu Police so far has arrested six people in connection with the case, and have invoked the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA). Those arrested are learnt to be associates of Jameesha Mubin, who was charred to death in suspicious circumstances after an LPG cylinder inside a Maruti 800 he was driving exploded near a temple in Coimbatore around 4 am on 23 October.
According to police, Mubin, 25, an engineering graduate, has been previously questioned by the NIA in 2019 for alleged terror links. His name is mentioned as the primary accused in the case.
The sixth arrested person has been identified as Afsar Khan alias Upsar Khan, a relative of Jamesa Mubin who was killed when the car bomb exploded. Afsar Khan allegedly procured some of the raw materials used to make the explosives through e-commerce websites. “Afsar Khan a cousin of Jamesa Mubin who died in the Ukkadam car cylinder blast was arrested by police officials today. Afsar Khan was picked up two days before by the special investigation team,” Coimbatore Police said.
Five people arrested on Monday night were Mohammad Thalka, 25, Mohammad Asarudheen, 25, Muhammad Riyaz, 27, Feroz Ismail, 27, and Mohammad Navaz Ismail, 27.
On Wednesday noon, Police officials also conducted searches on Khan’s residence and took his laptop. The Coimbatore Police has said they suspect that some of the explosive materials which were seized from the house of the deceased were purchased online from popular e-commerce websites.
Coimbatore Police Commissioner Balakrishnan said that the ingredients that were recovered from the spot are used for making low-explosive bombs.
“We are trying to find who all are connected to their plot and execution of the conspiracy and how the explosive materials were purchased. Some of the investigation done so far indicates that Jamesa Mubin had bought many items through Amazon and other courier services. We are investigating all the angles. When we visited Mubin’s residence, outside his house a few Amazon empty boxes were found,” Balakrishnan said.
He said that apart from the arrest that has been made, the police have been questioning people and trying to keep the investigation open to find out all possibilities. The police official further said that the materials that were seized from the house of the deceased indicated that there was an intention to make more bombs.
