‘Terror duo had set sights on Bandra theatre’

The accused — Abdul Latif and Riyas Ali Imtiyaz — were produced before the Mazgaon court on Friday

POLICE CUSTODY EXTENDED TILL APR 11

Mateen Hafeez | TNN

Mumbai: Investigations into the arrest of two suspects, who were allegedly planning to set the ONGC’s Bandra headquarters on fire, revealed they were also planning a terror strike at two more places, including Bandra’s G7 cinema complex, officials told TOI on Friday.

The Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS) arrested two suspects, Abdul Latif (29) and Riyaz Ali Imtiyaz (22), who are Bandra and Dahisar residents, respectively, on March 14. They were produced before the Mazgaon court on Friday and their police custody was extended till April 1. They have been booked under the various sections of the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA).

“The suspects were instructed by their Pakistani handler, one ‘Uncle’, to set the ONGC headquarters on fire and commit terrorist activity at Mangaldas Market in south Mumbai, Borivli’s Thakkar Mall, the G7 cinemaplex in Bandra (West) and a chawl near Thakkar Mall,’’ an official said. G7 houses seven cinema halls with an approximate sitting capacity of 2,000 people. “The accused had gone to watch movies and they surveyed the multiplex. We are still in the process of interrogation,’’ an official said.

The remand application on Friday stated that the ATS wanted the duo’s custody to ascertain how many more persons were to go to Pakistan for training. The two suspects were a l l e g e d ly promised a training in o p e at i n g firearms by the Indian fugitive, “Uncle’’, who is suspected to be a 1993 Mumbai serial bomb blast absconding accused, Bashir Khan. The police have got the recorded conversation between “Uncle’’ and the two suspects. They were allegedly talking to “Uncle’’ for the last twoand-a-half months.

The duo were directed by the handler to recruit young boys and arrange for them to be sent to Pakistan for training and to carry out terror attacks in India. Magistrate B S Chavan remanded the two to further police custody till April 1.
mateen.hafeez@timesgroup.com

The Times of India, March 27, 2010