A special MCOCA court today extended till February 28 the remand of Indian Mujahideen co-founder Yasin Bhatkal and his aide Asadullah Akhtar in connection with the July 2011 serial bomb blasts case.
Special public prosecutor Ujjwal Nikam told the court they have got some crucial information about IM from the
arrested accused and also wanted to know about other wanted members from the duo, now in in ATS custody.
The case is very vast and every aspect is required to be investigated,” read the remand application.
Accepting Nikam’s contention, special judge A L Pansare extended the custody of Bhatkal and Akhtar.
Three powerful blasts which ripped through crowded areas in Mumbai on July 13, 2011, killing at least 21 people
and injuring 141.
Earlier, five accused – Naquee Ahmed, Nadeem Shaikh, Kanwar Pathrija, Haroon Naik and Mohammed Qafeel Ansari were
held in the case and are facing trial under the stringent Maharashtra Control of Organised Crime Act (MCOCA), Indian Penal Code and other laws.
Police are looking for top IM operative Riyaz Bhatkal, besides Waqas Ibrahim Sad, Dubai-based Muzaffar Kolah and
Tehseen Akhtar Shaikh.
The National Investigation Agency (NIA) had arrested Yasin Bhatkal (30) who is wanted in over 40 terror cases and
carries a reward of Rs 35 lakh, as well as Akhtar, from the Indo-Nepal border on the night of August 28 last year.
Bhatkal, who hails from Bhatkal village of Udupi district in North Karnataka, is wanted in a string of terror
attacks in Ahmedabad, Surat, Bangalore, Pune, Delhi and Hyderabad, the agency had said.
Bhatkal, who was earlier associated with banned SIMI, is suspected to have allegedly conspired along with others to
“wage war against India”.
———————–PTI