NIA names three more accused in supplementary charge sheet in Red Fort area blast case

The National Investigation Agency (NIA) has charged three more accused, including an absconder, in connection with the November 2025 car bomb explosion near the Red Fort.

In its supplementary charge sheet, the NIA has named Zameer Ahmad Ahanger, Tufail Ahmad Bhat, and Muzafar Ahmad alias Faraz/Zafar, all from Jammu and Kashmir, as accused. This takes the number of persons charged in the case to 13, including the prime accused, Umer Un Nabi, who died in the explosion.

“Absconding accused Muzafar Ahmed, a paediatrician (MBBS, MD), has been identified as the elder brother of co-accused Dr. Adeel Ahmed Rather and a founding member of Ansar Ghazwat-ul-Hind (AGuH) – an offshoot of al-Qaeda in the Indian Subcontinent (AQIS),” the agency said.

According to the NIA, Mr. Muzafar could be one of the prime architects, along with co-accused Umer, Muzammil, Adeel, and Mufti Irfan, of the conspiracy that led to the vehicle-borne improvised explosive device (IED) blast on November 10, 2025.

“One of the founding members of AGuH Interim,  Mr. Muzafar, had attended the secret Eidgah meeting at Srinagar in June 2022, during which the terror module AGuH Interim was established,” it said.

The agency alleged that Mr. Muzafar was deeply involved in the manufacture, testing and safekeeping of TATP (triacetone triperoxide)-based IEDs at a clandestine facility run by Umer and Muzammil at Al-Falah University in Haryana’s Faridabad.

A non-bailable warrant has been issued against Mr. Muzafar.

According to the NIA’s investigations, Mr. Zameer is an Overground Worker (OGW) of AGuH Interim. He was allegedly in touch with handlers and acted as a courier for arms, ammunition, and cash for the terror module.

“Tufail, a former OGW of the proscribed Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) terror organisation, served as the module’s arms supplier. He had procured one AK-47, one Krinkov rifle, one pistol, magazines, and live ammunition through dead drops orchestrated by a handler, and delivered them to the deceased main accused Dr. Umer Un Nabi, for ₹3 lakh,” the NIA said.

It has established linkages between various accused through multi-disciplinary scientific investigation, including detailed forensic testing, geo-location mapping of conspiracy sites, and granular analysis of the financial trail, the agency said.