Bengaluru cafe blast case: NIA team inspects blast site, raids two locations in TN

The National Investigation Agency (NIA) on Tuesday was conducting raids at two places in Tamil Nadu in connection with its probe in the Bengaluru cafe blast case, said sources.

The raids were being conducted in Chennai and Cuddalore. NIA sources told IANS that the raids began in the morning in several other places in the country, including Tamil Nadu and Karnataka.

The NIA is conducting investigation following information that the Lashkar-e-Taiba south Indian commander Thadiyantavida Naseer had trained some youths in Bengaluru central jail and many of them are now out of prison.

More details were awaited.

The investigation of the Rameswaram Cafe blast, according to NIA sources, is focused on these youths and some of them are linked to Cuddalore and Chennai in Tamil Nadu.

On March 1, an explosion occurred in the Rameshwaram Cafe in Bengaluru's IT hub Whitefield. At least ten people were injured in the blast.

In October 2022 on the eve of Diwali, a 29-year-old youth Jameesha Mubin exploded himself near the Sangameswara temple in Ukkadam, Coimbatore. As the car blast took place before the set timing, the only casualty was the suicide bomber. NIA had taken over the investigation and arrested several people, including Mohammed Talka who is the nephew of the founder of Al Umma, S.A. Basha.

Basha was the prime accused in the Coimbatore bomb blast of 1998 in which 58 people were killed.

Bengaluru cafe blast case: NIA team inspects blast site

The National Investigation Agency (NIA) on Tuesday began its probe in the Rameshwaram Cafe blast case.

Ten people were injured in the cafe located on the International Technology Park Limited (ITPL) Road in the Whitefield area on March 1.

After the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) handed over the case, the NIA sleuths visited the blast site on Tuesday.

The team was also gathering information from the staff of the cafe.

Sources said the full-fledged probe led by NIA Inspector General Santosh Rastogi will soon be launched. The NIA team will hold a meeting with the state police department.

Although the Karnataka Government, especially DyCM D.K. Shivakumar, had assured people that the culprits will be nabbed soon, four days after there's no headway in the investigation. BJP objected to the casual handling of the case and demanded handing over of the case to the NIA as there was no credible progress on investigation by the state police.

The BJP also accused the Congress of misleading the people by prematurely giving a business rivalry angle to the blast case.

(With inputs from IANS)