Delhi terror attack: 43-year-old Shaheen Shahid – the so-called “Madam Surgeon” – is at the centre of the probe into the cross-border terror plot, TOI reported. This comes after the terror attack in Delhi last Monday that killed at least 12 people and left several injured after a “slow-moving” car exploded at a traffic signal near Red Fort. As the probe widens, the police have registered a fresh FIR under criminal conspiracy, and the National Investigation Agency (NIA) has taken over the investigation into the terror attack.
Doctor turned ‘Madam Surgeon’
Shaheen, who was arrested in Faridabad, is accused of helping plan the November 10 terror attack near the Red Fort. Not just this, she was also coordinating preparations for a series of attacks across six Indian cities, per the TOI report.
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According to a report by The Indian Express, Shaheen studied MBBS and MD at Allahabad’s SRN Medical College before joining GSVM Medical University in Kanpur in 2006 after clearing the UPPSC exam. She was an assistant professor in Pharmacology.
A former colleague told investigators that around 2010, she began wearing the hijab after coming into contact with an Indian-origin doctor abroad who shared ideological videos and literature.
In 2013, she abruptly left her job at GSVM without informing anyone; repeated notices to her residence went unanswered, and she was eventually terminated. She later joined Al-Falah School of Medical Sciences & Research Centre. The NMC has since cancelled the registrations of four doctors linked to the module, including Shaheen.
What is ‘D-6 mission’?
Apart from multiple arms and explosives connected to her, the officials seized digital files, handwritten notes and documents. They were planning another terror attack on December 6 to “avenge” the demolition of Babri Masjid in 1992, TOI further reported. Investigators, per the outlet, say that documents have a planned attack named “D-6 Mission”.
The documents have everything – right from the list of targets to pitches for recruitment, movement of funds, and encrypted communication methods.
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Interrogations, per a report by TOI, revealed that the “module” travelled to Turkiye in March 2022 to meet ISI handler Abu Ukasha. There, they allegedly received a “green signal” for the Dec 6 terror attack.
The investigation has also uncovered what investigators, per the TOI report, describe as a Rs 20-lakh hawala trail, allegedly routed through a JeM handler for operational use by Umar, Muzammil and Shaheen. Of this, around Rs 3 lakh is believed to have been spent on purchasing 26 quintals of NPK fertiliser, a nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium-based chemical compound used in agriculture, which is also capable of producing explosives used in the blast.
Following this, the agencies have begun auditing Shaheen’s bank accounts – three in Kanpur, two in Lucknow and two in Delhi to trace foreign transactions, TOI further reported.
Police have also detained her brother Parvez Ansari, 38, in connection with a J&K Police-led probe into a “transnational and interstate” terror module.
Who are the other accused?
The other accused in the “white collar” terror module are Umar Nabi, who was driving the car that exploded at Red Fort; his colleague from Al Falah university – Dr Muzammil Ahmad Ganai; and Adeel Majeed Rather, who was employed at a private hospital in Saharanpur.
However, Al-Falah University has distanced itself from Dr Umar and Dr Muzammil, stating that the University has no connection with the accused beyond their official capacities, and that no questionable chemical or material is being used or stored on the University premises.
On Friday, the National Medical Commission (NMC) had cancelled the registration of four doctors from Jammu and Kashmir – Dr Muzaffar Ahmad, Dr Adeel Ahmad Rather, Dr Muzamil Shakeel and Dr Shaheen Saeed – in the Indian Medical Register/National Medical Register with immediate effect, an ANI report based on sources said.
What forensic teams found at the blast site
Meanwhile, Delhi Police sources on Sunday confirmed that three cartridges recovered from the site, two live and one empty, were of 9mm calibre, a firearm type prohibited for civilian possession and used by security forces.
A senior official said that despite the cartridge recovery, no pistol or any of its parts were found at the scene. “These cartridges are usually only possessed by the armed forces or those with special permission,” police said. |
