Mangaluru autorickshaw blast: Accused person was inspired by ISIS, allege Karnataka Police
The accused, Shariq, was carrying an explosive device inside a pressure cooker when the blast took place inside a moving autorickshaw on Saturday.
The Karnataka Police on Monday alleged that the accused person in the Mangaluru autorickshaw blast case was inspired by the ideology of terror outfit Islamic State, NDTV reported.
The blast took place inside a moving autorickshaw in Mangaluru on Saturday. Two persons, including the accused Shariq, were injured.
Shariq was allegedly carrying a low-intensity Improvised Explosive device, or IED, inside a pressure cooker which accidentally exploded in the autorickshaw. The Karnataka Police had on Sunday described the incident as an “act of terror”.
On Monday, Additional Director General of Police Alok Kumar said that Shariq worked under multiple handlers.
“Shareeq’s immediate handler was Arafat Ali, an accused in two cases,” Kumar said, according to NDTV. “He was in touch with Mussavir Hussain who is an accused in the Al-Hind module case. Abdul Matin Taha was also one of the main handlers…Another two-three handlers are yet to be identified.”
The National Investigation Agency has already announced a bounty of Rs 5 lakh on Taha, Kumar said, according to PTI.
The police also said they found matchboxes, sulphur, phosphorus, batteries, circuit and nut bolts from Shareeq’s rented apartment in Mysuru.
“Our priority is to see that he [Shareeq] survives, we have to take him to a stage where we can question him,” Kumar said, according to NDTV.
Meanwhile, Karnataka Health Minister K Sudhakar said that the case was being investigated from all possible angles.
“We are also finding if he [Shareeq] has connections with international terror organisations, banned organisations or sleeper cells that may be active in the area since we are bordering Kerala,” Sudhakar told ANI.
Mangaluru blast case | Couple of months ago similar incident happened in Coimbatore. There also they planned to blast near temple. This person Md Sharik (accused)went there & met a person in Coimbatore. Police traced his movements of last 2 months:K Sudhakar, Karnataka Health min pic.twitter.com/YWJRN86IJE
— ANI (@ANI) November 21, 2022
He also claimed that Shareeq had connections in the Coimbatore car blast case.
“Police traced his movements for the last two months,” Sudhakar said. “There also they planned to blast near a temple.”
The blast in Coimbatore took place near a temple in Ukkadam, a sensitive area of the city, in a car that contained liquified petroleum gas cylinders and some other materials, including nails. A man identified as Jamesha Mubeen was driving the car and was killed in the explosion.
