LeT commander,held in Kerala by Karnataka Police

Umar Farooq, 35, of Parappanangadi in Malappuram, Kerala, and Ibrahim Moulavi, 50, of Vellimunda in Wyanad, Kerala, werearrested by the anti-terrorist squad of the central crime branch police.

City police commissioner Shankar M Bidari said Farooq was arrested from Ajmer in Rajasthan, while Moulavi was held at Kasargod in Kerala. Both of them were brought to the city on Saturday, and a city magistrate remanded them for 13 days in police custody.

Both of them were suspected terrorists and were being interrogated at an undisclosed location.

“The investigation into the serial blasts revealed the involvement of Umar and Ibrahim. Further probe will reveal their exact roles in the incident,” Joint commissioner of police (crime) Alok Kumar said.

Police claimed that the men were actively involved in the July 25, 2008 blasts which killed a woman and injured several others. They had visited Bangalore before the blast and were involved in the criminal conspiracy to plant explosives in the city, police said.

As many as 32 persons were named in the chargesheet. The 31st accused, People’s Democratic Party leader, Abdul Nasser Madani was arrested from Kerala’s Kollam district in August.
Police sources said they had been monitoring Farooq and Moulavi for the past six months, and succeeded in nabbing them on the same day from two different states.

Farooq was picked up from the Ajmer railway station, where he had gone to drop off a friend travelling to Ernakulam.

Police refused to reveal the identity of Farooq’s friend.
Farooq had been absconding ever since the Bangalore blasts.

He had stayed in Ajmer for some time before going to Tamil Nadu and other parts of India to escape arrest.

A police team comprising assistant commissioners HM Omkaraiah, SY Hadimuni and NH Siddappa rushed to Ajmer on learning that Farooq had returned to that place.

Moulavi was arrested from Badiyadukka in Kasargod district by a CCB team headed by inspector Nagaraju. Police said the accused had also absconded after the blasts, and returned to Kerala recently.

Police sources said both of them were active in recruiting youth for terror training camps. An additional charge-sheet against them had been filed earlier before the court. A warrant was also pending against Farooq.