A day after Karnataka DGP Praveen Sood confirmed that the Mangaluru cooker blast was not an accident but an 'act of terror', the state police has identified the suspect as Shariq, who was the passenger in the autorickshaw. The Mangaluru cooker blast on Saturday left two persons including the driver injured.
Shariq is a native of Thirthahalli in Shivamogga district and is presently recuperating in a private hospital in Manglauru, where the injured driver Purushottham Poojary is also undergoing treatment for burns.
A team from the National Investigation Agency (NIA) landed in Mangaluru on Sunday to probe into the case as Shariq was suspected to be having links to terror outfits. He is allegedly involved in at least two other terror cases.
“On November 19, a low-intensity blast had taken place in an autorickshaw near Nagori in the outskirts of Mangaluru around 4.30 pm. The passenger was carrying a cooker which exploded causing injury and burns to both the auto driver Purushottham Poojary and the passenger who is now identified as Shariq, son of one Aseem Abdul Majeed, a resident of Thirthahalli. During the probe, we found that Shariq is an accused in three cases – two in Mangaluru and one filed in Shivamogga rural police station on September 19, 2022. Shareek was on the run since August 20,” said ADGP (law and order) Alok Kumar, who addressed a press meet in Mangaluru on Monday.
According to Alok Kumar, the Mangaluru police commissioner recovered forged Aadhar cards from Shariq and during the investigation, it was revealed that he had arrived from Mysuru and boarded the auto at Nagori.
When the Mangaluru police tried to establish the passenger’s identity, they found a few Aadhar cards with him. One belonged to Premraj Hutagi with a Dharwad address. When the Hubli-Dharwad Commissioner located the Hutagi family (who had moved to Keshavapura locality) they realised the Aadhar card had been forged by Shariq. The police contacted Premraj Hutagi, who is working with the railway department in Tumakuru to ascertain the fact.
“Our officers worked in record time. The Mangaluru police found out that Shariq had rented a house in Lokanayak Nagar, Metagalli in Mysuru from its owner Mohan Kumar on September 20. He was working in a mobile repair training institute in Mysuru. He had two other Aadhar cards belonging to Surendran, a resident of Ooty (used to purchase a SIM card) and Arun Kumar Gawli from Sandur. The card was used to find accommodation in Coimbatore. On September 8, Shariq had travelled to Mangaluru, perhaps for a recce,” informed Alok Kumar, adding that simultaneous search operations across seven locations in all three cities had helped recover crucial evidences.
A big challenge was to establish the identity of Shariq, who had sustained 45% burns in the cooker blast. The police tried to match the old photos of Shariq. His relatives from Shivamogga - stepmother Shabana, sister Asiya and aunt Yasmin who were summoned to the hospital identified him on Monday.
“The police have now identified Shariq as an ISIS sympathiser and one of the four accused in the 2020 graffiti case in Mangaluru and also an accused in the 2022 Shivamogga bomb trial blast. The Mangaluru East and North police stations had filed a case under UAPA for the disfigurement of public places. Of the other accused Muneer Ahmed, Shadat Ali and Arafat Ali, Arafat is still absconding and is said to be in Dubai. Shariq was the main accused in the Shivamogga trial blast case as he had detonated bombs on the banks of Tunga river near Gurupura-Purale area. While one of the accused Jabiulla was arrested, Shariq had fled from Shivamogga to Coimbatore, then to Kerala before hiding in Mysuru,” said Alok Kumar, adding that police had recovered a stash of 150 matchboxes, phosphorous, sulphur, 9-volt batteries, nuts, bolts, circuit material used to make explosives from Shariq’s rented house in Mysuru.
According to police, Shariq was inspired by global terrorist organisations and had links with Arafat Ali, a handler, Abdul Mateen Taaha, also a native of Thirthahalli and accused in Al-Hind Islamic State Bengaluru module case (UAPA), Khaja Moideen involved in the murder of a Hindu leader in Tamil Nadu and Mehboob Pasha, who had formed ISIS-linked terror group and arrested by NIA. Taaha, who is part of the terror network involved radicalisation of youth and their recruitment in ISIS, is a wanted criminal and absconder carrying a cash reward of Rs three lakh announced by the NIA.
The state police have formed several teams - forensic, operations, interrogation and investigation, to go through the phone, digital devices and bank account details of the accused.
“We need to establish who is financing the activities of Shariq and who all have harboured him over the last two months. The movement of outsiders will also be examined. Since the blast took place in the auto and not in the intended spot, there was no major casualty though an innocent auto driver has been injured. If the blast had taken place in a crowded place, it would be a major disaster disrupting the peace in the coastal region. We are hoping to question Shariq, who is being treated for burns. As burn injuries have the risk of secondary infections, we hope he survives and we can interrogate him. The auto driver is a victim of terror act and he will be compensated by the state,” added Alok Kumar.
