Meanwhile, Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah thanked the NIA and the state police over the arrest of the accused.
The Rameshwaram Cafe at Kundalahalli, where the blast occurred.
A special NIA court in Bengaluru, on Saturday, 13 April, granted the national agency 10 days custody of two prime accused in the Rameshwaram Cafe blast case for further investigation.
Two prime accused— Mussavir Hussain Shazib and Adbul Matheen Ahmed Taahaa were brought to Bengaluru by the NIA from Kolkata on Saturday morning, after the court in Kolkata on Friday, 12 April, granted them a 3-day transit remand.
Meanwhile, Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah thanked the NIA and the state police over the arrest of the accused.
He maintained that the truth would come out after interrogation.
“I thank the NIA and the Karnataka police. They were able to trace the accused persons and arrest them in Kolkata,” Siddaramaiah told reporters in Mysuru.
“After interrogation, we will get to know what had happened,” he said.
The NIA had arrested Mussavir Hussain Shazib and Adbul Matheen Ahmed Taahaa from Kolkata for their alleged role in the 1 March blast at Rameshwaram Cafe in Bengaluru, which left 10 people injured.
An IED explosion rocked the cafe located on ITPL Road, Brookefield, Bengaluru, on March 1.
The NIA release on Friday revealed that the two accused were hiding near Kolkata under their false identities.
Abdul Matheen Taha has been using a Hindu identity and forged an Adhaar card under the name of Vignesh. Mussavir Hussain Shazib has been using a driving licence named Mohammed Juned Sayed.
The NIA further acknowledged the support from central investigation agencies, and the state police of West Bengal, Telangana, Karnataka, and Kerala.
The NIA is a specialised probe agency to investigate terror-related cases. The agency was created in 2008 following the 26/11 Mumbai terror attacks.
On 27 March, the NIA made its first arrest—Muzammil Shareef, who was picked up and placed in custody as a co-conspirator after its teams raided 18 locations, including 12 in Karnataka, five in Tamil Nadu and one in Uttar Pradesh.
NIA, which took over the case on 3 March said it identified these two accused, along with Maaz Muneer Ahmed and Muzzamil Sherif, as the terrorists who had played a pivotal role in the explosion.
“Muzzamil Sherif was involved in providing logistical support to the other accused in carrying out the IED explosion,” the NIA said.
“It was Abdul Matheen who also worked on the escape plans and managed to evade arrest all these weeks for himself and his co-accused. The duo, along with their co-accused Maaz Muneer Ahmed, were also involved in terror cases earlier,” it added.
Last month, the NIA announced a reward of ₹10 lakh each for those providing information leading to the arrest of these two accused.
Soon after the blast on 1 March, the Karnataka Police registered a case under the stringent Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act and Explosives Substances Act.
(With PTI inputs)
May 03, 2024
May 02, 2024
May 02, 2024
May 02, 2024
May 02, 2024
May 02, 2024
