Properties of three Bihar blasts suspects attached

Properties of three absconding suspects in the Patna serial blasts have been attached by Bihar and Jharkhand Police, police said Monday.

In Bihar, the property of suspected Indian Mujahideen operative Haider Ali, accused in bomb blasts in Patna and Bodh Gaya, was attached Sunday night after he failed to surrender, police said, while in Jharkhand, police attached properties of accused Taufeeq and Numan.

Haider is a resident of Khiryawa village under Madanpur police station in Bihar's Aurangabad district, while the other two are residents of Sithiyo village situated at Dhruva area of Ranchi.

"A joint team of the NIA (National Investigation Agency) and Bihar Police attached the property of Haider as he failed to surrender after a special court asked him to till Jan 9," a police official said.

The joint team seized four wooden beds, iron gate, chairs, clothes and utensils from the house in the presence of Haider's mother Rehana Khatoon, he said.

Khatoon along with her two daughters makes beedis to earn their livelihood.

Haider is wanted for planning and executing acts of terrorism, including the July 7 Bodh Gaya and the Oct 27 Patna blasts -- the latter occurred before Bharatiya Janata Party's prime ministerial candidate Narendra Modi was due to address a rally and left dead at least seven people, including a suspected bomber, and nearly 100 injured.

Ten bombs exploded at Bodh Gaya's Mahabodhi temple in which two Buddhist monks were injured. Three live bombs were later recovered and defused.

In Ranchi, a Jharkhand Police official told IANS that "an NIA team had come with a court order to attach properties of two accused of Patna serial blast - Taufeeq Ansari and Numan. Their properties were attached".

Taufeeq is a nephew of Imtiyaz Ansari arrested for the Patna serial blasts.

An NIA team had several times met family members of Imtiyaz, Numan and Taufeeq in connection with the Patna blasts probe.

Two days ago, the property of IM operative Tahseen Akhtar alias Monu, accused in several bomb blasts including in Delhi, Mumbai, Patna and Bodh Gaya, was attached by the NIA and Bihar Police after he failed to surrender within the stipulated deadline, police said.

Akhtar is a resident of Maniyarpur village in Samastipur district.

Last year, a cash award of Rs.10 lakh was announced by the NIA for any information leading to his arrest.

The NIA has arrested four people in connection with the Patna blasts.