HYDERABAD: Former army doctor Ashfaq Alam living in Hyderabad was picked up by the Anti-Terrorist Squad (ATS) of the Uttar Pradesh police on Thursday, in connection with the investigation of a blast that took place at a masjid at Kushinagar district in UP on Monday.
Ashfaq’s grandfather Haji Kutubuddin is the alleged mastermind of the blast that occurred at Bairagipatti village under the police limits of Turkpatti in the district. Ashfaq, who served as a captain in the Indian Army, took voluntary retirement in 2017 and has since been preparing for the civil services.
Though there were no casualties reported in the incident, the blast had damaged a big portion of the masjid’s structure. According to sources, immediately after the blast, Ashfaq, who had been near the masjid, called up Superintendent of Police Kushinagar to allegedly make it look like he was helping the police department. He remained at the mosque till the police arrived.
Claiming that he was a former defence staff, he managed to mingle with the police officials. But when one of the senior officials asked him to show his identity proof, he became agitated and and left the place. Inquiries later pointed to his role in supplying the explosives.
While Ashfaq was picked up from his residence at New Janaki Nagar Colony in Tolichowki, Haji was also reportedly detained on the Indo-Nepal border while he was allegedly attempting to cross over. Haji has been accused of planting the explosives inside the masjid and Ashfaq with transporting the materials.