Sources said Atif may have held charge of Indian Mujahideen operations — a different group recently formed — while SIMI supervised the blasts under Tauqeer for the last two months.

“Tauqeer was the link between Atif and Abu Bashar, who is in Gujarat police custody. With intelligence agencies’ help, the Ahmedabad police probe and interceptions, we have come to know that Tauqeer was asked by SIMI’s top shot (Safdar Nagori) to contact Atiq. Atif’s number was left at Tauqeer’s Mumbai Meera Road residence six months back, after which Tauqeer contacted Atif in Delhi and they carried out the operations,” said a top source.

Delhi Police say Tauqeer was in Delhi two days before the Saturday blasts and had receed the places with Atif. “After the blasts, they took autorickshaws and buses and came here to this flat. After the first blast, Atif sent an SMS to Tauqeer, who had reached Mumbai by then, and then Tauqeer sent a mail to the media,” said a source.

Till the Ahmedabad blasts, Bashar was reportedly aware of the Delhi blasts but did not know anything about Atif and his “module”, said a police official.

“Atif was asked to make bombs, arrange members and then plant bombs. He had around 12 persons in his module even before the Jaipur blasts. They all were in Jaipur on July 13. Also, before the Ahmedabad blasts, Atif along with nine others, including a 14-year-old boy, went to the city on July 24,” said a source.

According to him, the young boy was a part of the “module” and knew how to make bombs. Police believe that after planting bombs in Ahmedabad on July 26, all returned to Delhi the next day by train. Officials also say that on the return trip, two of the men who stole cars from Mumbai for the Ahmedabad blasts accompanied them.

The conspiracy for the Delhi blasts is believed to have been hatched in Jamia Nagar in Delhi — where the encounter took place on Friday — in Tauqeer’s presence, in the first week of August. Abu Bashar and Tauqeer may have stayed back in Delhi while the “module” went to Ahmedabad.

“Tauqeer is the main leader who played an important role in all the blasts,” confirmed Alok Kumar, DCP, Special Cell. Delhi Police officials added that there is no dossier on Atif as he had never been arrested. “He was a student and belonged to Azamgarh. Most of the members of this module also belong to Azamgarh. They had been staying here in the Jamia area on rent for around two and a half months.”

Three others, Bashar, Abu Zar and Danish, seem to have stayed in the Jamia Nagar flat in July 2 for three days.

According to Delhi Police officials who questioned Bashar, he didn’t have much information on Atif, having talked to him only on the phone, but knew there was a hideout in the Jamia area.

The other members of this “module” are believed to be all members of the Indian Mujahideen who pretended to be students.