Bangalore blast accused held in Kerala

published on February 24, 2014

TIRUNELVELI: In a prize catch, a team of sleuths from Kerala and Tamil Nadu nabbed a key suspect wanted in connection with a bomb blast outside a BJP office in Bangalore, from his hideout near Punalur in Kerala in the early hours of Sunday. The blast in April last year, which left 18 people injured, was caused by a bomb placed in a two-wheeler.

Paravi Badusha, 27, is also a suspect in the cases of planting a pipe bomb targeting BJP leader L K Advani and murders of Sangh Parivar leaders in Salem and Vellore. Police surrounded the hideout at Anchal near Punalur in Kerala late on Saturday based on a tip-off and arrested him early on Sunday.

K Sahul Hameed alias Paravai Badusha is regarded to be part of a terror cell that included his relative Panna Ismail and associates Police Fakrudeen and Kitchan Buhari, who are already in custody. After the arrest of Panna Ismail and Bilal Malik in Puttur, Andhra Pradesh last year, Badusha’s arrest is the most significant breakthrough against the outfit. Police say though Badusha was not as dreaded as Fakrudeen, his arrest would shed more light on the conspiracy and execution of the Bangalore bomb blasts. Police also hope to unravel the network of explosive suppliers since Badusha was entrusted with the task of transporting and hiding explosives.

Police said they have seized a pistol and 17 kg of explosive substances from him. M X F Besky, CB-CID DSP who led the team, confirmed the arrest. “We had been tracking his movements for some time. We rounded him up after a tip-off confirming his exact location,” he said.

Badusha was brought to Tirunelveli on Sunday evening and produced before a judicial magistrate, who remanded and sent him to the Palayamkottai central prison.

Badusha has been booked under Explosive Substances Act, Arms Act, Unlawful Activities Act and several counts of the IPC. Police said they would be seeking custody of Badusha for interrogation. “Only after interrogating him will we be able to find out about the people who harboured him all these days, his accomplices, his plans and his role in extremist activities in the past,” a police officer said.

According to Bangalore police, Paravai Badusha had procured ammonium nitrate-based explosive gel and electrical detonators on the instructions of prime accused Kitchan Buhari. He then gave it to one Mohamed Salim, who in turn handed it over to Buhari. So far 14 accused, including Buhari, have been arrested in connection with the Bangalore blasts case.

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