- Umar Mohammed assembled the explosive in a parking spot near the Red Fort monument: sources
- He spent three hours inside the car at the parking before the blast, the probe has found
- Umar communicated with his handlers about target selection while driving through Delhi: sources
In a key revelation in the Delhi blast case, investigators have found that Umar Mohammed alias Umar un-Nabi, who triggered the car blast near the iconic Red Fort, assembled the explosive in a public parking spot near the monument.
A key question during the mapping of Umar's movement before the blast was what he did during the three hours he spent at the parking near Sunehri Masjid. CCTV footage showed him driving into the parking at 3.19 pm and driving out at 6.28 pm. The blast occurred around 6.52 pm.
The investigation had also suggested that during the time he was in the parking lot, Umar did not step out of the car even once.
According to sources, the probe has now revealed that Umar was in touch with his handlers after entering Delhi that morning. The subject of discussion, investigators suspect, was the target area. Umar drove through Mayur Vihar and Connaught Place before heading to Old Delhi. Eventually, the parking near the Red Fort was chosen, partly owing to the monument's symbolic significance.
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But Umar and his handlers had not factored in that it was a Monday and the Red Fort was closed to visitors. The parking area was largely empty. So, the parking blast plan was shelved. Umar and his handlers then decided to trigger the blast on the crowded Netaji Subhash Marg, which has the Red Fort on one side and Chandni Chowk on the other.
According to the investigators, Umar spent those three hours in the parking assembling the explosive. As soon as it was done, he left the parking and hit the road. Soon after, he triggered the blast that claimed 13 lives and injured 20 others.
The investigation earlier revealed that Umar was in panic after his associates Muzammil and Shaheen -- both doctors -- were arrested in connection with the recovery of the 2,900-kg explosives in Faridabad. He feared that it was only a matter of time before the investigators reached him, and decided to trigger the blast before that happened. A quick plan was hatched and the doctor drove into the national capital with an explosives-laden car.
