NIA granted 4 days' custody of two IM operatives

A Delhi court on Saturday granted NIA four-day custody of two alleged Indian Mujahideen operatives to further interrogate them in connection with the Hyderabad twin blasts that left 16 dead.

During an in-chamber hearing, District Judge I S Mehta allowed the National Investigation Agency's (NIA) plea seeking custody of Syed Maqbool and Imran Khan to confront them with another alleged IM operative Obaid-Ur-Rehman, who has been brought from Bangalore Central Jail and is in NIA's custody till March 20 in connection with the case, sources said.

Maqbool and Imran were brought from Tihar Jail after the court had yesterday issued production warrants against them. Sources said the NIA told the court that they need to confront both Maqbool and Imran with Obaid-Ur-Rehman as some conflicting statements have been given by them during their separate interrogation. The two were earlier remanded to NIA's custody for five days by the court during which they were taken to Hyderabad in connection with the blasts. Rehman was remanded to NIA's custody on March 13 after the agency had submitted that his custodial interrogation was required to unearth the entire conspiracy which led to the bombings. He was brought from Bangalore jail after the court had issued a production warrant against him.

The sources had said the NIA had told the court that Rehman was a key IM operative and he may give some vital information against the banned group's members who were involved in the blasts. The NIA had told the court that Maqbool and Imran had revealed some important facts about the blasts, the sources had said.

Maqbool and Imran were lodged in Tihar Jail after their arrest by Delhi Police in the August 2012 Pune blast case. The NIA had told the court that the duo recced Hyderabad's Dilsukhnagar area where the blasts took place. The court had also issued non-bailable warrants against IM founder Riyaz Bhatkal and nine other operatives of the banned group in connection with the Hyderabad blasts -- Iqbal Bhatkal, Mohsim Chaudhary, Amir Reza Khan, Dr Shahnawaz Alam, Asadullah Akhtar, Ariz Khan, Mohd Khalid, Mirza Shadaab Beg and Mohd Sajid.

According to the sources, the NIA had told the judge that the conspiracy behind the Hyderabad blasts was hatched by the IM modules. The NIA said the blasts took place in Hyderabad on the alleged instructions of Riyaz Bhatkal.

The court gave the custody of Maqbool and Imran to the NIA till March 20 for unearthing the conspiracy hatched by the outfit for carrying out the twin blasts at Hyderabad. I have perused the application as well as affidavit and case diary. Hatching of conspiracy requires the investigation, therefore, both the accused are remanded to police custody for further period of four days i.e upto March 20, the judge said.

Sources said during the hearing, Senior Public Prosecutor Ahmed Khan, appearing for the NIA, argued that further five days custody of Maqbool and Imran is required to unearth the intricate details of conspiracy with accused Obaid-Ur-Rehman who is also in their custody. The police custody remand was opposed by Mehmood Pracha, counsel for accused, saying the agency's application was not in proper format and no contents related to unearthing the conspiracy are mentioned in the plea, sources said.

He also argued that earlier also the NIA had taken five days custody of the accused on the same ground, they said.