Delhi blast: L-G orders tighter intel, stricter checks on doctors & sellers

Delhi L-G VK Saxena has ordered strict checks on medical staff, chemicals, vehicles and online content after the Red Fort blast, asking police to tighten monitoring

Delhi Lieutenant Governor (L-G) Vinai Kumar Saxena on Friday directed the Police Commissioner and Chief Secretary to implement a series of precautionary and preventive measures in the wake of the explosion near the Red Fort that killed 15 people.

 

The L-G has instructed the administration to build a central data repository with records of doctors and paramedical staff employed in hospitals, especially private ones. This database will also include information about their medical qualifications. In cases where doctors have obtained degrees from foreign universities, the L-G has recommended secondary background checks, with details to be shared with the police.

 

Delhi blast: Monitoring vehicle sales, digital platforms

 

Saxena has also called for “consultation exercises” with digital platforms and financers involved in the sale of vehicles, particularly second-hand cars and auto-rickshaws. He stressed that no vehicle should be allowed on the road if the registered owner is different from the actual owner, a problem reportedly most common among auto-rickshaws.

Red Fort blast: Directions to Delhi Police

 

In written communications sent separately to the Police Commissioner and the Chief Secretary, the L-G Secretariat issued instructions to strengthen policing and intelligence-gathering. The Police have been asked to:

• Keep a digital record of all entities buying and selling ammonium nitrate beyond a certain limit, including photographs and other key details of buyers and sellers.

• Hold consultations with social media platforms such as Meta and X to improve scientific tracking of radicalised content aimed at “brainwashing citizens”.

• Enhance human and technical intelligence, especially in vulnerable pockets prone to radicalisation. Police have also been told to strengthen community outreach and citizen engagement for better preventive policing. 

Administration tasked with strengthening oversight

 

Alongside police measures, the administration has been instructed to:

• Build the central data repository of medical professionals, including those with foreign degrees and share related information with police for verification.

• Conduct consultation meetings with digital platforms and financers involved in the sale and purchase of vehicles, especially second-hand ones, to improve monitoring.

NIA arrests four more accused

 

Meanwhile, the National Investigation Agency (NIA) has arrested four more key accused in the November 10 Delhi car blast outside the Red Fort. Those arrested include Dr Muzammil Shakeel Ganai of Pulwama, Dr Adeel Ahmed Rather of Anantnag, Dr Shaheen Saeed of Lucknow, and Mufti Irfan Ahmad Wagay of Shopian.

 

They were taken into custody in Srinagar on production orders issued by the district sessions judge at Patiala House Court.

 

The November 10 blast occurred around 7 pm in a moving Hyundai i20 car, allegedly driven by suicide bomber Umar Un Nabi. The attack killed 15 people and injured over two dozen.

 

The agency said it is pursuing several leads to uncover the wider conspiracy and identify more people involved in the bombing. 

Cabinet declares blast a terror act

 

Earlier this month, the Union Cabinet passed a resolution condemning the November 10 car explosion near the Red Fort, describing it as a “senseless act of violence” and declaring it an act of terror. The Cabinet expressed sorrow over the deaths, observed two minutes of silence for the victims, and praised the quick response of medical teams and emergency personnel.

 

The resolution described the attack as a “heinous terror incident perpetrated by anti-national forces” and conveyed “heartfelt condolences” to the affected families.

 

(With agency inputs)