JAMMU: The recently-busted ‘white-collar’ terror module, allegedly operated by a group of highly educated doctors, had been actively scouting for a suicide bomber since last year — with key operative Dr Umar Nabi pushing the plan, officials said on Sunday.
According to interrogation inputs from arrested suspects, Umar — believed to have died in the VBIED blast near the Red Fort on November 10 — was “hardcore radicalised” and insistent that a suicide attack was crucial for the group’s operations.
Following leads from questioning of arrested doctors Dr Adeel Rather and Dr Muzzaffar Ganaie, Srinagar Police on Saturday detained a youth identified as Jasir alias ‘Danish’, a political science graduate from Qazigund, in connection with the plot.
Officials said Jasir admitted to meeting members of the so-called “Doctor module” in October 2023 at a mosque in Kulgam, after which he was taken to a rented accommodation linked to Al Falah University in Faridabad, Haryana.
While other members initially intended to use him as an over-ground worker (OGW) for Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM), Umar allegedly spent months trying to brainwash him into becoming a suicide bomber. The plan fell apart in April this year after Jasir backed out, citing his economic hardship and the belief that suicide is forbidden in Islam, officials said.
Umar emerged as radical key planner
Earlier reports identified Umar, a 28-year-old doctor from Pulwama, as the most radicalised member of the interstate terror network spanning Kashmir, Haryana and Uttar Pradesh.
Investigators believe he was planning a vehicle-borne IED attack in a crowded location — possibly in Delhi or at a site of religious significance — around the December 6 Babri Masjid demolition anniversary.
His radical transformation is suspected to have begun after a 2021 trip to Turkiye with co-accused Dr Muzammil Ahmad Ganaie, where they allegedly met JeM OGWs.
Upon their return, the doctors began procuring large quantities of precursor chemicals from open markets — including 360 kg of ammonium nitrate, potassium nitrate and sulphur — much of it stored around the university campus, officials said.
The plot unravelled after Ganaie’s arrest earlier this month and the seizure of the explosive material, which may have caused Umar to panic before the premature blast near the Red Fort, killing 13.
Clues emerged from Nowgam poster case
The network began to unravel after JeM posters surfaced in Bunpora, Nowgam on October 19. Swift action by Srinagar Police led to the arrest of three locals — Arif Nisar Dar alias Sahil, Yasir-ul-Ashraf, and Maqsood Ahmad Dar alias Shahid, all previously involved in stone-pelting.
Their interrogation led to the arrest of Maulvi Irfan Ahmad, a former paramedic-turned-Imam from Shopian, accused of supplying the posters and aiding the radicalisation of the accused doctors.
Police led by Srinagar SSP Dr G V Sundeep Chakravarthy subsequently cracked the module, exposing what officials call one of the most sophisticated terror conspiracies in recent years, involving professionals with deep academic backgrounds and minimal suspicion profiles.
