Arm supplier brought to Gujarat in connection with constable's murder

The Gujarat police brought a man, accused of supplying arms to terror groups, from Uttar Pradesh for questioning in connection with murder of a police constable during a bank robbery in 2007 here, crime branch officials said today.

Izhar Khan, who was arrested by Uttar Pradesh Anti terrorist squad (ATS) from Lucknow following tip off from city crime branch on October 21, was brought to ahmedabad on a transit warrant and has been remanded to police custody by a local court till October 28, they said.

According to crime branch officials, Khan is close aide of one Viqaruddin Ahmed of Hyderabad who had allegedly shot dead a constable Vinay Yadav in Maninagar area of the city in 2007 while robbing a bank.

Khan had supplied arms to Ahmed for bank robbery in Maninagar in 2007, police said.

Khan had also supplied arms to a terror group named Darshgah Jehad-e-shahadat formed by Ahmed, who was involved in the murder of some policemen on the anniversary of Mecca Masjid blast in Hyderabad, they said.

Izhar is wanted in seven cases by Andhra Pradesh and Gujarat Police and had been supplying arms including pistols, revolvers and cartridges to the gang since 2003, police added.

Crime branch officials said that Izhar's name cropped up during interrogation of Ahmed who was arrested, along with five of his associates, by Hyderabad police in July this year.