Shahbaz Hussain, the key accused in the Jaipur blasts case, revealed during interrogation that SIMI cadres went into militant action mode after Safdar Nagori reorganised the group with 25 top functionaries at the April 25, 2007 meeting at Castle Rock, 80 km from Hubli, in Karnataka.

Though he claimed to have no knowledge of the perpetrators of the Jaipur serial blasts, he provided insight into the working of SIMI, which, he said, underwent an ideological transformation after the Karnataka meet.

Besides electing Shahbaz Hussain as amir (president) of the group, the following decisions were taken at the meet:

• The group’s name was changed to Islamic Movement by dropping Students (S) and India (I) from the acronym SIMI.

• The maximum age bar of 30 years for entry was removed and the membership was made open to all.

• The rule of suspending ansars (cadres) when they went abroad was abolished.

• While link with Jamait-e-Ulema Hind was to be maintained, it was decided that the group would not align with any political group.

• The central committee with Safdar Nagori as secretary general was abolished and three committees, headed by Kamruddin Nagori, Shibily Peedical Abdul and Hafeez Hussain alias Adnan, were set up to assist Shahbaz.

According to Shahbaz, it was at this meeting that Shibily Abdul, a software engineer from Kerala, was given the charge of Maharashtra and UP, Adnan was told to look after South India and Kamruddin Nagori was asked to oversee the training the cadres as well as handle the Madhya Pradesh operations.

... contd.