The Anti-Terrorist Squad (ATS) officers investigating the 7/11 serial blasts in Mumbai told The Indian Express today that the three men arrested in the case till date were in contact with the bomb-makers in Mumbai.

Sources in the ATS also said that one of those arrested, Kamal Ahmed Ansari, had met a man named Junaid, a key Lashkar operative who was controlling the Aurungabad module that was busted by the ATS in May. A huge quantity of arms and RDX was seized from the module.

Junaid is suspected to have been involved in the bomb blast on the Karnavati Express in Gujarat in February. On Friday morning, the ATS announced its first breakthrough in the case, with the arrest of three suspects. While Ansari (32) and Khalid Aziz Ronak Sheikh (24) were arrested from Basupatti village in Madhubani district of Bihar, Ansari’s brother-in-law Mumtaz Ahmed Maqbool Ahmed Choudhary (38) was arrested from Navi Mumbai. They have been remanded to police custody till July 30.

‘‘Investigations reveal that while the three arrested men may not have known the identities of the bomb-planters, they were definitely in touch with the bomb-makers in Mumbai, and Mumtaz might have even met them here. We are interrogating them in this connection,’’ said an ATS officer.

According to the ATS, of the three men, Ansari is the most important catch, as he is likely to provide vital leads about where and when the whole conspiracy was hatched.

‘‘The role of the trio is that they were among the conspirators, and may have arranged for the explosives to reach Mumbai. Ansari is a second-tier operative, functioning below a commander. Around three years ago, he had gone to Pakistan via Nepal, where he met Junaid. The other two are fourth-rung hands, and assisted Ansari in his plans,’’ said the officer.

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