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Wanted for 7 years, doing trade in Mumbai since 2006

‘Arrested Mulund train blast accused was an aide of Iqbal Bhatkal'.

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Vaziul Qamar Khan’s luck, which had lasted seven years, finally ran out on Monday. On the run since the 2003 Mulund station train blast, the wanted accused was arrested by the state anti-terrorism squad (ATS).

Khan, in fact, was wanted in two more blast cases — one at an eatery outside Mumbai Central railway station on December 6, 2002, and another outside Vile Parle railway station on January 27, 2003.

The Thane unit of the ATS got a tip-off that the 44-year-old Khan alias Babu Bhai was coming to meet someone near Deluxe Hotel on LBS Marg, Kurla (West). A police team, led by inspectors Rajan Ghule, Shailesh Gaikwad and Jeetendra Agarkar, was waiting when Khan reached the spot, and he was immediately arrested. A 7.65mm pistol and three live cartridges were recovered from him.

Khan was produced in a local court, which remanded him in police custody till May 20. Pradeep Sawant, deputy commissioner of police (ATS), said, “We need to investigate the source of weapon recovered from Khan, and whether he is still involved in criminal activities.”

Additional director general of police (ATS) Rakesh Maria said that Khan used to be a close aide of top Indian Mujahideen leader Iqbal Bhatkal. “At that time, the Bhatkal brothers were running extortion rackets in Kurla. We will have to find out whether Khan had kept in touch with Iqbal all these years,” Maria said. “Also, we will have to check whether the Bhatkal brothers had any role in the blasts.”

After the Mulund train blast, Khan fled the city. But he came back in 2006, and started an embroidery factory in Dharavi. Staying in rental accommodations, he constantly kept changing his address to avoid detection by the cops.

“The Mulund blast happened in March 2003, and the police started making arrests in May. By then, Khan had fled to Balrampur in Uttar Pradesh. He stayed at his in-laws’ place there. Later, he went to Siddharth Nagar, also in UP, and then shifted base to Madhya Pradesh,” Maria said. “In 2006, Khan returned to the city and started staying in Wagle Estate, Thane. He kept changing his base. Before he was caught, he was staying in Kurla.”

The additional DGP further said that Khan had attended a terrorist training camp at Padgha in Thane district. “He was present at the meetings in which the blasts were plotted, and was also there when the explosives were made,” Maria said.

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