The Enforcement Directorate (ED), on Thursday, revealed that the Sri Manjunatha Swamy temple at Dharmasthala was the intended target of the 2022 Mangaluru cooker bomb blast, and not the Kadri temple in Mangaluru as previously believed.
On November 19, 2022, a low intensity improvised explosive device which was concealed in a pressure cooker accidentally detonated inside an auto rickshaw in Mangaluru injuring the auto driver Purushottham Poojary and the main accused Mohammed Shariq, who was allegedly carrying the cooker to the intended target. The cooker bomb exploded prematurely inside the auto due to an error in the timer setting, as it was set to nine seconds instead of 90 minutes.
The Karnataka government declared the incident as an “act of terror” and handed over the case to the National investigation Agency (NIA). The agency, which registered an FIR under various sections of the IPC, UAPA and the Explosive Substances Act, filed a chargesheet on November 30, 2023, against Mohammad Shariq and co-accused Syed Yasin.
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The ED initiated an investigation based on the FIR registered by Kankanady police station following a complaint by auto driver Purushottham, and the FIR was reregistered by the NIA (RC 47/2022/NIA/DLI). As sections 3, 4 & 5 of the Explosives Substances Act, 1908 are scheduled offences under section 2(1)(y) of the PMLA, 2002, an ECIR bearing no. BGZO/84/2022, dated 25.11.2022, was recorded for commencing investigation under PMLA, 2002.
“The chargesheet filed in this case reveals that the auto rickshaw blast at Mangalore was a part of the plan of the ISIS, a terrorist organisation with the aim to spread terror and wage war against the Government of India and to threaten the integrity and sovereignty of India,” said the press release issued by ED.
ED’s investigations also revealed that the ISIS online handler named ‘Colonel’ had given training over Wicker app, Telegram among other to the main accused Mohammad Shariq alias Premraj and the other accused to make improvised explosive device (bomb) Funds were also arranged through certain mule accounts and also through crypto currencies which were at times encashed by Syed Yasin and Mohammad Shariq, through PoS agents, for a commission. In some instances, the encashed cryptocurrencies were routed through the fraudulently opened mule accounts in FINO Payments Bank. A total of Rs 2.86 lakh was deposited by different crypto currency dealers in the mule accounts and Rs 41,680 was collected in cash from PoS agents. The said amounts were utilised for the purchase of the items online to assemble the IED and for hiring hideouts in Mysuru city and other places as well as for conducting recce at various places in Tamil Nadu, Kerala and Karnataka. The bomb was specifically supposed to be planted at the Dharmasthala Manjunatha Swamy temple, according to the press release.
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A third accused, Maaz Munir, is said to be the person who provided the details of the above-mentioned FINO payments bank mule accounts to Mohammad Shariq to receive the various payments sent by the online handler Colonel. The Karnataka police had found Rs 39,228 in Shariq’s bag at Father Muller Hospital.
The ED has provisionally attached Rs 29,176 from the bank account of Syed Yasin, under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), 2002.
Shariq had prior police encounters, including pro‑terror graffiti in Mangaluru in 2020 and involvement in a separate Shivamogga IS conspiracy case. All the accused are now in judicial custody.
Meanwhile, the injured auto driver Purushottam Poojary was given a new auto rickshaw, given Rs 5 lakh by local BJP leaders and Rs 2 lakh as compensation from the CM’s relief fund as he was unable to resume work. His house was renovated by a local organisation.
