Delhi blast LIVE updates: Suspects allegedly pooled Rs 26 lakh to buy explosives that killed 13 near Red Fort

A Delhi Police team entered the Digambhar Jain Temple, located about 50 metres from the Red Fort blast site, to gather evidence. Officials said several items had been thrown inside the temple due to the explosion’s impact and were collected for examination. The temple stands adjacent to the Gauri Shankar Temple, close to where the blast occurred.

The doctors arrested for their role in the “white-collar terror module” had collected over Rs 26 lakh to purchase explosives used in the Red Fort blast. The four accused — Dr Muzammil Ganaie, Dr Adeel Ahmad Rather, Dr Shaheena Sayeed, and Dr Umar Nabi — pooled the cash and entrusted it to Dr Umar for operational purposes, as reported by PTI.

Dr Umar Nabi, an assistant professor at Al-Falah University in Faridabad and a Pulwama native, was driving the Hyundai i20 that exploded near Red Fort on Monday evening. Investigators suspect the funds were part of a wider terror network.

Dr Arif, currently detained by the UP ATS for questioning, showed no noticeable change in his behaviour after the Delhi blast.

“We were not friends. Initially, when we arrive, we do not have hostels, so resident doctors usually rent a flat… I never heard the names of Dr Shaheen or Dr Parwez from him… There was no change in his behaviour (after the blast). I got that flat from a broker,” Dr Arif’s flatmate told the media.

Al-Falah University in Faridabad, located just 30 kilometres from Delhi, has become a key focus in the ongoing investigation into the Red Fort blast that resulted in 13 deaths and 20 injuries.

The private university is under intense scrutiny because one of the doctors arrested in connection with the attack, Dr Muzammil Ahmad Ganaia from Pulwama, was an occupant of Room 13 in the Al-Falah Medical College hostel. Investigators strongly suspect that this specific hostel room was used by the Faridabad-based terror cell as a central location to coordinate, plan, and execute their attacks.

Read Firstpost’s indepth explainer for all the details.

The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has received directives to launch an investigation into the funding sources of Al-Falah University, government sources told NDTV. This order is part of a broader government effort that also includes demanding a forensic audit of the university’s financial accounts.

Furthermore, the Economic Offences Wing (EOW) has been instructed to scrutinise the overall functioning and operations of Al-Falah University.

Exclusive information obtained by CNN-News18 from J&K Police sources indicates that the terrorists responsible for the deadly car blast near the Red Fort metro station in New Delhi had initially planned a major attack in Kashmir, similar to the 2019 Pulwama incident. However, the apprehension of one of the key suspects thwarted their primary objective.

This critical arrest forced the module to change tactics and execute the explosive attack in the capital as a desperate, last-minute measure. J&K Police sources detailed the identities of the core team responsible for the Monday evening blast, which tragically resulted in the deaths of 13 people and left several others injured.

“The core team included five people: Umar [the bomber], cleric Maulvi Irfan, doctors Adeel Rather and Muzammil Shakeel, and a woman. The woman financed Muzammil as she was his girlfriend, but we are still not sure how involved she was. Apart from this, there are two people who seem to be important. These are Adeel’s brother, Muzaffar, who has fled to Afghanistan; and Aamir, who bought the car,” the source told CNN-News18.

Speaking in the context of the recent blast near the Red Fort in Delhi, Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah emphasised that the entire population of Jammu and Kashmir should not be labelled as terrorists. He stressed that the acts of violence and attempts to disrupt peace and communal harmony in the region are carried out by only a small, isolated group of people.

Dr. Shaheena Saeed, a prime suspect in the Delhi Red Fort blast, reportedly hinted that her “real work” began after 4 pm, once she finished her duties at Al-Falah School of Medical Sciences and Research Centre in Faridabad, sources told NDTV. Investigators said she carried a rosary (misbaha) and a hadith book. A colleague described her as “strange,” noting she often ignored rules and left campus without notice. The institute, which has received a show-cause notice from NAAC, has denied any link to the attack and pledged full cooperation. Intelligence agencies have identified Saeed as the head of Jaish-e-Mohammed’s women’s wing.

Read Firstpost’s explainer for a detailed overview about her.

DNA test confirms Pulwama-based Dr Umar Nabi was the man behind the Red Fort blast — a key breakthrough linking the Delhi explosion to Faridabad’s Al-Falah University. Click to know why this is significant.

The National Assessment and Accreditation Council (NAAC) has stated that Al‑Falah University in Faridabad neither holds accreditation nor has applied for one, according to CNNNews18. Although the university’s website claimed its schools had received NAAC accreditation, the Council clarified those claims were incorrect: only its engineering college had previously earned an “A” grade (in 2013) and a teacher-education school in 2011 — both of whose accreditation validity has lapsed. The university itself has never completed the NAAC accreditation process. NAAC has reportedly issued a show-cause notice to the institution and may recommend sanctions.

A man who parked a red Ford EcoSport in Haryana’s Khandawali village has been detained by the Faridabad Police in connection with the Red Fort blast that occurred on Monday.

According to officials, the car — a red EcoSport bearing the registration number DL 10 CK 0458 — is owned by Umar Nabi, the main accused in the explosion. The vehicle was recovered from near Khandawali village, and police have taken it into custody for investigation.

The children of Mohsin, a Meerut resident killed in the November 11 car bomb blast near Delhi’s Red Fort, have urged authorities to punish those responsible for the tragedy.

In separate statements to the news agency IANS, both the victim’s son and daughter demanded strict action against the culprits, with the son simply stating, “Punish those who are responsible.”

The blast, which occurred at 6:52 pm, was so powerful that a severed human arm was discovered nearly 300 metres away from the explosion site.

A 12-second video shows the arm lying on the roof of a shop in Lajpat Rai Market, located some distance from where the blast took place. The limb, severed up to the forearm, was seen resting atop the shop’s structure.

Britain’s Deputy PM David Lammy, speaking at an FCDO bilateral partnership event, condemned the recent Delhi terror attack, offering “deep condolences” to those affected.

“I share my deep condolences to everyone who has been affected in the Delhi terrorist attack on Monday… It was one of the very first countries that I visited within weeks of becoming Foreign Secretary last year. It was a great honour to meet with PM Modi to discuss our shared history and shared future. What a future India has, it is the emerging superpower of the 21st century,” he said.

A medical student named Mohammad Arif has been taken into custody by the Uttar Pradesh Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS) from Kanpur for his alleged links to Delhi blast suspect Dr Shaheen Saeed, officials said.

Gyanendra Kumar, Chief Medical Staff at LPS Institute of Cardiology & Cardiac Surgery in Kanpur, told ANI that Dr Arif, a first-year cardiology student from Anantnag, Kashmir, was summoned for questioning yesterday evening. Kumar added that the institute administration had no knowledge of his life outside the campus.

He also noted that Arif had been training in the Cardiology department for the past three months, and no unusual behaviour had been observed during that time.

“Dr Arif is a first-year cardiology student. He took admission through counselling 2-3 months ago. He doesn’t live on campus. He lives outside. At 7:00 in the evening, we were informed that a team had called him for questioning. He’s from Kashmir. I have no knowledge of whether there was any such behaviour or any complaint before this; we are not aware of anything like this. We do not know with whom he lives. We have no idea who his roommate is. We do not know about anyone,” CMS Kumar said.

Dr Shaheen Saeed was earlier arrested in a case involving arms and explosives found in Faridabad.