Indian Mujahideen men used Nepal school as safe haven: Police

Interrogation of a Pakistani member of the Indian Mujahideen,who was arrested by the Delhi Police last month,has revealed that a school in a Nepal village was the new hideout for the members of the outfit

Interrogation of a Pakistani member of the Indian Mujahideen (IM),who was arrested by the Delhi Police last month,has revealed that a school in a Nepal village was the new hideout for the members of the outfit.

Mohammad Adil alias Ajmal who had gone to Pakistan via Nepal twice in the past two years told the police that some of IM members who fled after the serial blasts in Delhi in 2008 stayed at a school (name withheld) in Bhutah village in Nepal.

Some members of the IM module led by Atif Ameen (who was killed in the Batla House encounter in Delhi in 2008) who fled the country after the crackdown began using this school as a safe haven, said a senior police officer.

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The police said the school belongs to a local politician and sometimes the alleged terrorists also stayed there under assumed names taking up teaching assignments.

It is basically a hiding area for members of the IM. We have contacted Nepalese authorities for taking the investigations further, said the officer.

The Delhi Police had arrested seven members of the IM,including Adil,for allegedly carrying out the German Bakery blast in Pune,the attack on Taiwanese tourists near Jama Masjid in Delhi and the blast outside Chinnaswamy stadium in Bangalore in the past two years.

On Thursday a Delhi court remanded the seven in six more days of police custody. The court allowed the plea of the Delhi Police for custodial interrogation of the accused till December 21 to track their terror network.

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The other six have been identified as Mohammed Qatil Siddqui,Gohar Aziz Khumani,Abdur Rehman,Mohammed Irshad,Gayur Ahmed Jamali and Aftab Alam. The court also allowed the brother of Gayur to meet him in custody.

Police said atleast five members of the module were absconding. We have identified the absconding members and efforts are on to arrest them, said the officer.