Ansari,before he became Abu Jundal

Ansari is wanted in the Aurangabad arms haul of May 2006,the Ahmedabad railway station blast of February 2006 and the German Bakery blast in Pune in February 2010. But the Beed police say there is no offence registered against him in the district. Ansari’s parents are believed to have shifted to Mazalgaon taluka in Beed. Their house in Hattikhana was found locked on Monday.

Ansari’s initiation into the terror fold began with his proximity to SIMI members from Aurangabad like Mohammed Amir Shakeel Ahmed. He is believed to have undergone terror training along with Zulfiqar Fayyaz Kagazi Ahmed Kagzi — another accused in the Aurangabad arms haul and German Bakery blast — in Poonch,after coming into contact with Jammu and Kashmir-based LeT operative Khalid Sardana,who was arrested from Ahmedabad in September 2006.

AURANGABAD ARMS HAUL

The dossier with the intelligence agencies identifies Ansari as the one who,along with Fayyaz Kagzi,travelled to Kathmandu to meet LeT operator Abu Rehan,where the entire Aurangabad conspiracy was planned.

Acting on a tip-off on May 9,2006,the Maharashtra Anti Terrorism Squad (ATS) chased and intercepted a Tata Sumo on the Aurangabad highway that was transporting RDX,10 AK-47 assault rifles,and 2,000 rounds of ammunition hidden in CPUs and mango cartons. According to the ATS,the consignment was being sent to Gujarat and Hyderabad. Three persons,including Mohammed Amir Shakeel Ahmed,who were transporting the consignment were arrested. Although Ansari was following the Tata Sumo in a Tata Indica,he mysteriously managed to escape despite police vehicles tailing the Sumo and Indica,prompting speculation that Ansari was a mole of police and intelligence agencies who had gone rogue.

On May 12,a similar consignment being transported in a Tata Indica was recovered by an ATS team from Malegaon. The following day,more RDX was recovered from inside a culvert at Manmad,and another consignment was found at an electrical shop in Malegaon shortly after.

In total,a huge cache of 43 kgs of RDX,16 AK-47 rilfes,3,200 live cartridges,62 magazines for the rifles,and 50 hand grenades were recovered by the police,making it one of the largest arms haul ever made in the state. On September 3,2006,the Maharashtra ATS filed a 1,481-page chargesheet against 16 arrested accused in the case. They were booked under the stringent Maharashtra Control of Organised Crime Act (MCOCA) and the Arms Act case. Since then,four more accused have been arrested in the case,while six are still wanted,including key players like Zabiuddin Ansari,Fayyaz Kagzi and Raheel Shaikh.

Kagzi,in possession of passport number F-43991598 issued from Mumbai,was reported to have fled to Pakistan after the arms haul. “Fayyaz was identified as the one who indoctrinated and provoked all the arrested accused to carry out jehad. His sister was killed by her in-laws for dowry,after which Fayyaz and his friends killed his brother-in-law with sticks and swords,” said a Maharashtra ATS officer. Investigations revealed that both Kagzi and Ansari had escaped to Pakistan via Bangladesh,and their escape was facilitated by one Abdul Khaja and Shahid Bilal.

E-MAIL INTERCEPTS

The ATS intercepted e-mails exchanged between LeT operatives soon after the Aurangabad arms haul. In these mails,Zabiuddin is referred to as “Dawood” and Fayyaz Kagzi as “Arsalan”.

On May 11,2006,an e-mail sent by Lashkar operative Mohammed Aqib Shaikh to Nepal-based LeT commander Junaid at 8 am read:

“Bhaijan yahan par sab pareshan hai,ghar ke bado ko paralysis ho gaya hai. Dawood bhai ki tabiyat kharab hai. Arsalan bhai bhi bahar gaye hue hai…contact soon immediately. (Brother,everyone is worried here,the elders are suffering from paralysis. Dawood bhai is unwell. Arsalan bhai has also gone out.)”

On May 12,2006,a reply sent by Junaid at 2 am read:

“Hi,mujhe pata chala hai. Aap Dawood ke bare main confirm karke kahe woh kahan hai. Doosrey 2,4 worker hai unko…aap Dhaka mein job kay liye rawana kar dain. Jo bhi contact main hai unko forain aap kisi doosri jagah main bhej dain…jaise hi factory ki condition theek hogi to tab dekhenge. (I learnt about it. You find out and confirm Dawood’s location. The other 2-4 workers…send them to Dhaka for the job. Whoever is in contact,send them to other locations immediately. Whenever the condition of the factory becomes okay,we will see what is to be done.)”

On February 25,2006,Mohammed Aqib Shaikh sent an e-mail to Junaid,a few days before the Karnavati Express blast at Ahmedabad railway station,informing him that Fayaz Kagzi had started planting bombs:

“New business chalu kiya hai,1 tarikh ko Arsalan bhai ke hathon opening hua hai,25 se 50 log aaye the. Sab ko refreshment diya gaya. Dua kijiye ke business achche se chale. (We have started the new business. Arsalan bhai inaugurated it on the 1st,25-50 people had come. We gave refreshments to everyone. Please pray that the new business does well.)”

THE BEED CONNECTION

The arrest of Mirza Himayat Baig,who is believed to have been recruited by Ansari,on September 7,2010,in the Pune German Bakery blast case,once again brought Maharashtra’s Beed district under the scanner. Baig,who hails from Beed,is one of several youths from the district who are alleged to have participated in major terror operations.

“Ansari and Kagzi were related to Baig,they worked together for SIMI in Beed. Ansari and Kagzi trained Baig in Colombo in 2008 and also provided him funds for terror activities,” said ACP (Crime Branch) Vinod Satav. The duo are suspected to have given Baig money for explosive devices. Baig’s brother,Mirza Inayat Baig,however denied any connections with Ansari or Kagzi.

Beed first came under the radar of security agencies when Zabiuddin Ansari was named as a key Lashkar operative involved in the Aurangabad arms haul case in May 2006. Several of the 20 accused arrested in the Aurangabad arms haul case,such as Fayyaz Kagzi,were picked up from Beed or hailed from the district.

“We are aware that there has been a great deal of radicalisation in Beed,that has increased in the last decade or so. There are various events that have caused communal tension in the area,but there are historical factors that have led to the problem as well. The region was initially under the control of the Nizam,and when power changed hands after independence,it gave rise to a sense of resentment among Muslims living there. On May 15,1986,communal riots broke out in Umapur in Beed in which several Muslims were killed by Hindus,” said a senior state police officer.

Sources said five more youths from Beed were found missing after the Aurangabad RDX haul in 2006. Their parents have filed missing reports. It is suspected that they may have joined a terrorist terror outfit,but there is no confirmation yet.