Top IM man Tehseen Akhtar sent to police custody till Apr 2

Akhtar was brought to Delhi in the night and was produced before the judge here this morning

Top Indian Mujahideen operative Tehseen Akhtar alias Monu, one of the alleged masterminds of a string of terror attacks in the country, was today remanded in police custody till April 2 by a Delhi Court.

Akhtar, who was arrested from near Kakarvitta Indo-Nepal border in Darjeeling district of West Bengal yesterday, was brought to Delhi in the night and was produced before the judge here this morning.

According to police sources, the Special Cell of Delhi Police told the court that they need to conduct a sustained custodial interrogation of the accused to unearth the entire terror conspiracy of the banned outfit.

Police also told the court that Akhtar, a top bomb-maker of IM, was required to be confronted with one of his top associate Zia-ur-Rehman alias Waqas, a Pakistani national who was arrested on March 22, and others who were also apprehended by them.

According to the police, Akhtar was heading IM after the arrest of Yasin Bhatkal, co-founder of the terror outfit.

The other four accused -- Waqas, Shaquib, Mahruf and Waqar -- were earlier produced before a court here after being arrested from Rajasthan on March 22 and March 23 respectively and they were remanded to police custody for interrogation till April 2.

Akhtar was wanted by security agencies for his alleged roles in a string of terror strikes, including the July 7, 2013 Bodh Gaya Blasts and the October 27 last year blasts in Patna.

The police had earlier told the court that Akhtar and Waqas, had visited Jaipur and Jodhpur a few months back imparted IED manufacturing training to arrested accused -- Mohd Mahruf, Mohd Waqar Azhar alias Haneef, and Shaquib Ansari alias Khalid -- for carrying out terror activities.

The police said that Waqas, arrested outside Ajmer Railway Station was an expert in making IED (improvised explosive device).

With the arrest of these four accused from Rajasthan, the special cell claimed they have averted a "spectacular terror attack" during the upcoming elections.

Akhtar was arrested days after Waqas and other three accused were apprehended.