&imwidth=800&imheight=600&format=webp&quality=medium "Red Fort blast probe: NIA presents accused Jasir Bilal to Patiala House court amid tight security")
Security has been tightened at Patiala House Court with Rapid Action Force personnel deployed outside the complex, as the National Investigation Agency produced Delhi Red Fort blast accused Jasir Bilal in front of the court on Tuesday (Nov 18). Ahead of Bilal’s appearance, the court, earlier in the morning, had received a bomb threat via email. This prompted stepped-up checks by the bomb disposal squad and a dog squad team.
Who is Jasir Bilal?
Jasir Bilal, also known as Danish, appeared in court as part of the NIA’s probe into the Red Fort area car bomb blast. The agency says he played a key role in preparing for the attack. According to the NIA, “Jasir had allegedly provided technical support for carrying out terror attacks by modifying drones and attempting to make rockets ahead of the deadly car bomb blast which killed 15 persons and left over 30 persons injured.”
Jasir, a resident of Qazigund in Anantnag district, is described as an active co-conspirator behind the attack and had worked closely with the terrorist Umar un Nabi, the terrorist who carried out the explosion and is said to have played a part in planning the “terror carnage”. The blast killed 15 people and injured more than 30, making it one of the deadliest terror strikes in the capital in recent years.
In an earlier statement, the NIA said Jasir was arrested in Srinagar during searches linked to the case. The agency said he had been assisting in efforts to build weapons and operational tools for the attack, and had coordinated with Umar un Nabi through the planning stages. The NIA further said it continues to explore various angles to unravel the conspiracy behind the bombing.
Officials said several teams of the anti-terror agency are pursuing multiple leads and are conducting searches across states to identify every person involved in the terror attack. This is the second consecutive arrest in the case, as the agency on Sunday arrested Amir Rashid Ali, another Kashmir resident, who had conspired with the suicide bomber to carry out the terror attack.
