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Pune blast: ATS to question jailed IM terrorists

Among those likely to be questioned were Saddiq Sheikh, believed to be one of the founders of IM, and Mansoor Peerbhoy, sources said today.

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Maharashtra's Anti Terrorism Squad (ATS) is planning to question a few jailed Indian Mujahideen (IM) terrorists to get some leads on who could be behind the Pune blast.

Among those likely to be questioned were Saddiq Sheikh, believed to be one of the founders of IM, and Mansoor Peerbhoy, sources said today. The IM is stated to be an amalgam of former SIMI cadres and operatives of the Pakistan-based terror group Lashker-e-Taiba(LeT).

Sheikh and Peerbhoy had specially recruited a Pune resident Mohsin Chaudhury into the IM, sources said, adding, he has been on the run. Police believes that he had not left the country.

Chaudhury had emerged as a key suspect during the Delhi and Ahmedabad blasts in 2008.

As many as 21 members of IM have been arrested since 2008 by Mumbai police for allegedly conducting blasts at various city across India. They include Sheikh and Peerbhoy, the tech savvy member of the group responsible for sending alert mails prior to the blasts.

The investigating agencies were also focussing on the Close Circuit Television footage of a hotel opposite the German bakery, a famous eatery in the city. As many as nine people including two foreigners were killed in the blast at the bakery on Saturday night. The blast bore signature signs of the serial explosions that rocked Delhi and Ahmedabad, sources said.

Explosives used in the Pune blast were a mixture of ammonium nitrate and RDX. Ammonium Nitrate was one of the key components used in the Delhi serial blasts, also believed to
be the handiwork of the Indian Mujahideen.

The technique of packing explosives and keeping it in a bag and leaving it unattended is also similar to the one used for Delhi serial blasts.

There are 52 FIRs registered against the arrested IM men in Delhi, Gujarat, Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh and Rajasthan. The nine alleged IM operatives, including techie Mansoor Peerbhoy, were arrested by the Mumbai police and booked under the Maharashtra Control of Organised Crime Act (MCOCA). 

Nine of the arrested IM members are presently in Gujarat where they are facing trial for the Ahmedabad blasts. ATS, which is probing into the Pune blast, is looking at IM’s links with the LeT.

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