Author: Mateen Hafeez & S Ahmed Ali
Publication: The Times of India
Date: January 24, 2012
URL: http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2012-01-24/mumbai/30658723_1_naqi-ahmed-naqi-and-nadeem-yasin-bhatkal

Bihar's Darbhanga district has come into sharper focus during the investigations into the 13/7 triple blasts, with investigators saying that much of the indoctrination, recruitment , financing and planting of the bombs occurred there.

 The Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS) on Monday claimed it had cracked the 13/7 blasts case with the arrests of two men from Deora Bandhauli in Darbhanga district. Naqi Ahmed and Nadeem Akhtar have been arrested for aiding and abetting two wanted Pakistani nationals and Indian Mujaheedin (IM) founder member Yasin Bhatkal to carry out the blasts. In addition , the hawala money brought to Mumbai to conduct the blasts came through the Dubai-Nepal-Bihar-Mumbai route.

In a further Darbhanga connection, the six IM members, including Qateel Siddiqui, who were arrested by the Delhi police in November for the Chinnaswamy and Delhi high court blasts are all from that district.

 Police said Yasin Bhatkal had met Naqi in 2008 through a common friend, Gayoor Jamali. Bhatkal had fled Karnataka after the Mumbai crime branch launched a manhunt for him following the arrests of 21 IM members.

 An ATS official said, "While police looked for him in the town of Bhatkal in Mangalore, in Pune in Maharashtra and Azamgarh in UP, Yasin took shelter in the house of one Jamali in Darbhanga. Jamali later introduced Naqi to Bhatkal. Bhatkal then started recruiting unemployed youths in Darbhanga for the IM. Bhatkal sent selected youths to Pakistan via Nepal for arms training."

 While Naqi's family members have been maintaining that Naqi was unaware of the 13/7 conspiracy and helped Bhatkal unknowingly, ATS chief Rakesh Maria said Naqi, who is from a well-to-do family, knew Bhatkal was a terrorist, helped him find a house in Byculla, and stole a scooter for him knowing it would have a bomb planted in it.

 "Not only that, Naqi and Nadeem had stolen two more twowheelers , which are likely to be used in future blasts. Naqi provided Rs 1.5 lakh to the two Pakistanis to rent the flat in Habib Apartments. We have idependent witnesses and evidence to corroborate this," said Maria.