Junaid hiding in Ballia,Shahzad tells cops

During his interrogation by the Crime Branch,Shahzad confessed to his role in the Delhi blasts as well as the firing on Inspector Mohan Chand Sharma. He said he had thrown the murder weapon,.33-calibre revolver,into the Ganga Nahar in Bulandshahr. “Before going to Lucknow and Mumbai,he spent nights in mazars and dargahs at various places in Palwal,Bulandshahr,Aligarh,Kanpur and Lucknow,” said an officer.

Shahzad told the cops that after the September 13 blasts,a confident Atif Amin and his men carried out a further reccee of tourist spots in Delhi. “Shahzad disclosed that he,Atif Amin,Mohammad Saif,Junaid,Zeeshan,Zia-Ur-Rehman,Mohammad Shakil and others visited various restaurants in Connaught Place,South Extension and tourist spots in Delhi. He says that they wanted to hit India economically and send a message to tourists that India was not safe,” said a source.

Shahzad said he was supposed to take a boat to Pakistan in March 2009 for formal arms and ammunitions training if their module was busted by then. “Atif was trained in arms and bomb making and he wanted other members of his module to go Pakistan for training. He selected Shahzad for the same,” said the source. Shahzad had joined Atif’s module on August 28,2008 — 15 days before the Delhi blasts — and fled from Delhi along with Junaid on the day of the Batla House encounter.

Meanwhile,Shahzad was questioned about the Jaipur serial blasts in 2008 by the Rajasthan Police earlier this week. Officials say police officers from Ahmedabad and Surat might also come question him in the near future.