Delhi Red Fort blast was terror attack, declares India

New Delhi: The Government on Wednesday, November 12, termed the blast near the Red Fort as a “terrorist incident” even as it emerged during investigations that Dr Umar Nabi, who was driving the explosives-laden car, planned an attack here to coincide with the Babri Masjid demolition anniversary on December 6.

Officials involved in the investigations into the blast on Monday evening, which claimed 12 lives and injured several, said that Umar and another key suspect, Dr Muzammil Ganai, had met overground workers of the banned terror group Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM) during their trip to Turkiye in 2021.

They also said that an analysis of dump data retrieved from the mobile phone of Muzammil showed he had recced the Red Fort area multiple times in the first week of January.

Prime Minister Narendra Modivisited the LNJP Hospital and met the survivors, and once again declared that the perpetrators will be brought to justice. He was in the hospital for nearly 25 minutes.

A meeting of the Union Cabinet chaired by Prime Minister Modi upon his return from Bhutan directed investigating agencies to deal with the case with “utmost urgency and professionalism” to bring the perpetrators and their sponsors to justice without delay.

The meeting reaffirmed India’s unwavering commitment to a policy of zero tolerance towards terrorism in all its forms and manifestations.

Observing a two-minute silence in memory of the victims, the Cabinet adopted a resolution expressing profound grief over the loss of lives in the incident and said the situation continues to be “closely monitored” at the highest levels of the government.

“The country has witnessed a heinous terror incident, perpetrated by anti-national forces, through a car explosion near the Red Fort on the evening of 10 November 2025. The explosion resulted in multiple fatalities, and caused injuries to several others.

“The Cabinet directs that the investigation into the incident be pursued with the utmost urgency and professionalism so that the perpetrators, their collaborators, and their sponsors are identified and brought to justice without delay.The situation continues to be closely monitored at the highest levels of the government,” Information and Broadcasting Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw said reading out the Cabinet resolution at a media briefing.

In another development, police said a red Ford EcoSport car suspected to be linked to the blast has been traced and seized in Faridabad district’s Khandawali area, police said.

Also Read

Red Ford EcoSport car linked to Delhi blast seized in Faridabad

The Delhi Police sounded an alert across all police stations, posts, and border checkpoints in the national capital to trace the vehicle after investigations revealed that other suspects, already connected to the Hyundai i20 used in the explosion, were also in possession of another red-coloured car.

A preacher from Haryana, who allegedly helped store explosives in his rented home near Al Falah university in the Muslim-dominated Dhauj village of Faridabad, meanwhile, was detained and brought to Srinagar early Wednesday, Jammu and Kashmir police officials said. He will be the ninth person to be nabbed in the case by police.

Maulvi Ishtiyaq belongs to Mewat and would conduct religious sermons in the Al Falah campus, which is at the centre of an interstate ‘white collar’ JeM terror module with links to the blast near Red Fort, officials said.

It was from his rented home that police recovered more than 2,500 kg of ammonium nitrate, potassium chlorate and sulphur, they said.

The explosives were stored by Muzammil and Umar, they said. Dr Shaheen Sayeed, who, like the two men, is also connected to Al Falah University, is another key suspect who has been arrested.

The details of Umar’s plan have been pieced together after interrogation of the eight people arrested for their alleged links to the ‘white collar’ terror module centred in Faridabad and conversations with their family, friends and neighbours, the officials said.

According to officials, Umar informed the others about his December terror plan and began prepping for it by placing explosives in the Hyundai i20 he was driving on that fateful November 10.

He was likely assembling a vehicle-based improvised explosive device (VBIED) after taking lessons on its construction and detonation circuit from open sources available on the internet, the officials said.

Umar may have panicked on November 10 when a top Faridabadpolice officer appeared on television announcing that a terror module had been busted with the recovery of 2,900 kg of explosives in Faridabad, officials said. The 2,900 kg included the 360 kg of inflammable material recovered from Muzammil’s rented accommodation.

Umar took refuge in a mosque in the walled city where he stayed for three hours on Monday evening before driving out. A premature explosion took place. The VBIED was also incomplete, as shrapnel had yet to be assembled, the officials said.

Umar, a 28-year-old doctor based in south Kashmir’s Pulwama district, is believed to have been killed in the blast.

During investigations, it emerged that Umar and Muzammil had travelled to Turkiye where their handlers are suspected to be based.

These handlers were reportedly in contact with Umar and other members of the “doctor module”, officials said.

The passports of Umar and Muzammil show travel to Turkiye in 2021 shortly after they joined certain Telegram groups. A handler instructed the doctor module to disperse across India, with target locations, selected after the Turkiye visit, they said.

Investigators have traced the radicalisation of a “doctors’ module” through two Telegram groups, including one run by JeM operative Umar bin Khattab in Pakistan, they said.

Investigators also believed that the suspects wanted to carry out an attack similar to the Mumbai attack in 2008.

During investigations, it has also emerged that they also wanted to target crowded areas during Diwali but couldn’t do the same.

A senior police officer, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, said analysis of the dump data retrieved from Muzammil’s mobile phone showed his repeated presence in and around the Red Fort area in the first week of January.

Muzammil visited the Red Fort multiple times to study the security arrangements and crowd density patterns along with Umar.

Their movements were corroborated through tower location data and CCTV footage collected from nearby areas, the officer said.

“These visits were part of a detailed reconnaissance ahead of a planned attack on January 26,” he added.

The agencies are also analysing mobile dump data from the Red Fort area between 3 pm and 6.30 pm on the day of the blast to track Umar’s movement and communication.

Under the scanner after the blast, Al Falah University said it has only a professional associationwith the two of its doctors arrested in connection with the Red Fort blast and is anguished by the unfortunate developments.

While distancing itself from the terror-linked doctors, the university in a statement asserted that it is a responsible institution and stands in solidarity with the nation.

Get the latest updates in Hyderabad City News, Technology, Entertainment, Sports, Politics and Top Stories on WhatsApp & Telegram by subscribing to our channels. You can also download our app for Android and iOS.