Four suspects arrested in Patna serial blasts case

In a major breakthrough, the National Investigation Agency has arrested four persons, including alleged mastermind Hyder Ali alias 'Black Beauty', in connection with the Patna serial blasts ahead of Narendra Modi's rally last year.

Besides Ali, the others arrested from Ranchi were Taufeeq Ansari, Mojibullah and Numan Ansari, NIA sources said on Wednesday. NIA had announced a cash reward of Rs five lakh on their head.

The central intelligence agencies had been trying to crack the Patna blast case especially after the arrest of Yasin Bhatkal who was nabbed from Bihar last year. On October 27 last year, a bomb exploded on platform No 10 of the Patna Railway Station ahead of Modi's rally.

Later, blasts took place at Gandhi Maidan outside the rally. The NIA had named the four as absconding accused in its charge sheet filed earlier. So far, eight persons have been arrested in this case.