Jailed LeT operative Afsar Pasha masterminded last year's Mangaluru bomb blast: Police
Nagpur, Jul 30: Investigators have found that jailed Lashkar-e-Taiba operative Afsar Pasha masterminded the Mangaluru bomb blast that occurred in November last year and he provided training in making cooker bombs to the accused in the case, a police official said on Sunday.
Pasha, who had earlier received training in making bombs in Bangladesh, provided training to the Mangaluru blast case accused during their stay in a jail in Karnataka, he said.
The probe also revealed that the now-banned outfit Popular Front of India had earlier transferred Rs 5 lakh to Pasha's bank account, he said, adding that a "comprehensive report" has been prepared by the police based on the information given by Pasha, and it has been shared with the country's intelligence agencies.
Pasha is currently lodged in the Nagpur Central Jail after he was brought to the city earlier this month from a jail in neighbouring Karnataka in connection with a probe in threat calls made to Union minister Nitin Gadkari allegedly by gangster Jayesh Pujari, police said.
"During the ongoing probe being conducted by the National Investigation Agency (NIA) and the police, it came to light that Pasha was the mastermind of the Mangaluru bomb blast case," the police official said.
"Pasha's involvement in training the Mangaluru blast case accused, Mohammed Shariq, in manufacturing cooker bombs came to light during the probe," he said.
The blast occurred in an autorickshaw in Mangaluru on November 19 last year. Shariq, the accused in the case who hailed from Shivamogga in Karnataka, was in the autorickshaw with a pressure cooker fitted with detonator, wires and batteries when it went off.
The police had said that blast was "not accidental" but an "act of terror" with intention to cause serious damage.
Pasha was earlier convicted in a 2012 case of recruiting terrorists for Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) in Jammu and Kashmir. He was allegedly also involved in the December 2005 terror attack at the Indian Institute of Science in Bengaluru.
Pasha, who was lodged in the Hindalga jail in Karnataka's Belagavi in the Bengaluru blast case, was brought to Nagpur on July 14 in the Gadkari threat calls case. He is currently jailed here.
"Pasha had returned to India after receiving training in making bombs in Dhaka several years ago. He was previously involved in a blast in Bengaluru. Despite this, his role in the Mangaluru blast was overlooked during earlier investigations," the police official said.
"It has come to light that Pasha and Jayesh Pujari alias Kantha alias Shahir, were propagating Islamic fanaticism in the Hindalga prison at Belagavi during their incarceration there," he said.
The accused were influencing the jail inmates. Pasha provided training to Shariq on making cooker bombs, a method used in the Mangaluru blast case, the police official said.
The investigation also revealed that the now-banned outfit Popular Front of India (PFI) had transferred Rs 5 lakh to Pasha's bank account several months ago, he said, adding that the funds originated from the account of a person identified as Abdul Jalil, highlighting potential links between PFI and terror activities.
The funds were purportedly used to provide various facilities to those involved in anti-national activities. Smartphones were also reportedly made available to the accused within the prison walls, the police official said.
In September last year, the central government banned PFI for five years over its alleged links to terror funding and radicalisation activities.
"The police have now prepared a comprehensive report based on the information received from Pasha. The report has been shared with the state Director General of Police, ACS Home, Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS), NIA, and Intelligence Bureau for further investigation," the police official said.
Jayesh Pujari had made threat calls to Nitin Gadkari's office after planning it with Pasha, the police said.
Pujari had made a threat call to Gadkari's public relations office on January 14, demanding Rs 100 crore and claiming to be a member of the Dawood Ibrahim gang. At that time, he was lodged in the Belagavi jail, they said.
He made another call on March 21, threatening to harm Gadkari if Rs 10 crore were not paid to him. Pujari was arrested and brought to Nagpur on March 28 this year from the jail in Belagavi, and two cases were registered under provision of Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act here.
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Ram Temple built due to commitment of those in power; India already a Hindu Rashtra: Bhagwat
Nagpur (PTI): The Ram Temple in Ayodhya was built due to the commitment of those in power and the support of everyone in the country, RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat has said, emphasising that there is no need to declare India a Hindu Rashtra as it already is.
He was addressing a programme on Monday to felicitate individuals under whose leadership and guidance the Ram temple was constructed. The programme was organised by Dr Hedgewar Smarak Samiti in Reshimbagh here, according to a release issued by RSS.
Bhagwat said the temple was built by Lord Ram’s own will. Comparing it to the lifting of Govardhan (the mountain by Lord Krishna), he said such a feat does not happen unless everyone contributes.
"It rests on the Lord’s fingertip, but that fingertip does not move until people contribute their wood. The temple was built in the same way," he said.
Bhagwat further said that for the resurgence of Sanatan Dharma, the resurgence of Bharat is essential—an idea expressed 150 years ago by Yogi Aurobindo. As each contribution is made, he said, divine power continues to guide the fulfilment of this resolve.
The process of resurgence began in 1857, he pointed out.
Referring to the 2014 Lok Sabha elections, Bhagwat said that when the new government under Prime Minister Narendra Modi took oath, The Guardian in London published an article stating, "On this day, Indians have finally said goodbye to the British."
"Technically, we said goodbye on August 15, 1947, but we were not fully certain," he added.
Bhagwat questioned whether the Ram Temple would have been built without committed leadership.
If those in power were not committed, would the temple have been built? he asked.
"Bharat must rise. But what is Bharat? What kind of resurgence? What is Bharat-India? We were lost in this dilemma, and time was also lost.
"But our country chose a path. If there hadn't been such a massive movement (Ramjanmabhoomi Andolan), would the temple have been built? The movement happened on such a scale. But if those in power weren't committed to building the Ram temple, would it have been built?" he asked.
The RSS chief reiterated that the temple was built with the support of every individual in the country.
"The decision to build the temple was made, but without a strong foundation, how would it stand? Every person in Bharatvarsh contributed. Then Lord Ram’s fingertip performed its miracle, and this process will continue," he said.
Bhagwat also noted that the idea of Hindustan as a Hindu Rashtra was once mocked.
"Hindustan is a Hindu Rashtra. Until the Ram Temple was built, people laughed at this claim. Today, the same people say Hindustan is the land of Hindus," he said.
Many people ask the RSS to declare India a Hindu Rashtra, "but we say there is no need to declare what's already true, Bhagwat stressed.
"The Sun rises in the east—do we need to declare it? Similarly, Bharat is a Hindu Rashtra; it is already a reality, and everyone accepts it. But back then? Everyone mocked it. Those early inexperienced workers had faith in their hearts, belief in (RSS founder) Dr Hedgewar's words, so despite all this, they kept working," he said.
Bhagwat said the felicitation event was a way to express gratitude to all those who contributed to building the temple.
"They have done their work; now we must do ours. They were given the specific task of building the temple, and they excelled beyond expectations, making it more grand and beautiful than imagined, and it will be even more beautiful," he added.
Future plans are underway, Bhagwat said and called on people to contribute towards making the nation stronger and more prosperous.
"We must work to make it greater, more grand, and more beautiful than imagined, so that Dharma is established in the world,” he said.
He said the world's need can only be fulfilled by Bharat, and Bharat's resurgence will be done by Bharat's children, and that no other country will save Bharat.
"Bharat will rise great and save the whole world. This is written fate. If we contribute to fulfilling it, it will happen sooner, with minimal loss," he added.
