Karnataka

Malleswaram blast planned for 6 months

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bangalore malleshwara blast

BANGALORE: Six months planning and Rs 50,000 are all it took to execute the Malleswaram blasts on April 17, 2013.

While the planning happened over six months, the crucial, last leg was the 20-day reconnaissance from February 10 by three arrested men — Panna Ismail, Police Fakruddin and Bilal Malik.

A chargesheet filed before the First Additional Chief Metropolitan Magistrate Court here reveals that the decision of the location of explosives and date of the blast was taken after this recce.

The chargesheet, contents of which are available with TOI, says the Rs 50,000 paid by Kichan Buhari in two installments to implement the plan hatched at his Coimbatore residence was all the money used in the operation.

Portraying Buhari as the prime facilitator , police said he instructed Mohammed Salin, accused number 14 (A-14 ) and Shahul Hameed (A-16 ) to procure the ammonium nitrate-based explosive and electric detonators which were eventually planted opposite the BJP office in Malleswaram .

“As directed by Kichan Buhari, Hameed procured about 20 to 30kg of Explosive Gel Ammonium Nitrate-based explosive and electric detonators in three traveler bags on two separate occasions,” the chargesheet reads. The accused met several times between October 2012 and April 2013 in Buhari’s house where the identification and mobilization of persons involved in blast were done, the document says.

While Buhari was the facilitator, Panna Ismail, Police Fakruddin and Bilal Malik , the chargesheet says played a crucial role in motivating and influencing the other arrested. The responsibility of preserving the explosives rested with four men — Rahamathulla (A-6 ), Sait Asgar (A-5 ), Valyalil Hakeem (A-7 ) and Suleman (A-11 ), all of whom took turns in storing it.

While stating that Buhari planned to use the explosives for other offences, the chargesheet points out that he had, in March 2013 got it moved to Erode (Satyamangalam panchayat office) from Coimbatore . The chargesheet doesn’t throw light on when and how the explosives were transported to Bangalore and the details of the plan execution.

Bike and phone for blast

Just before the 20-day recce in Bangalore, Suleman was instructed to get a bike for which he contacted a person named Sakayaraj in Coimbatore on February 2.

The chargesheet, which states this meeting took place at 9.45pm, has charged Suleman with borrowing the bike (a TVS Apache) on the pretext of taking it for a test ride. It was later handed over to Panna Ismail, and it was used for the recce in Bangalore and returned to Sakayaraj. Using a part of the money paid by Kichan Buchari, Bilal Malik purchased a Suzuki Max 100 motorcycle with registration number TN 22-R-3739 . This was eventually used for the blast.

The chargesheet also reveals that Buhari instructed Basheer to procure a SIM card and a cellphone, which he did on February 15 in Tirunelveli. It was handed over to Panna Ismail who used it for the blast.

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