NIA forms special 10-member team to investigate Delhi blast

New Delhi, Nov 12 (IANS) The National Investigation Agency (NIA) has formed a special team of 10 officers to investigate the blast near Delhi's Red Fort Metro Station.

The 10-member special team will be led by NIA ADG Vijay Sakhare and will include an IG, two DIGs, three SPs, and the rest DSP-level officers, sources said on Wednesday.

This comes a day after the Home Ministry on Tuesday handed over the Delhi blast investigation to the NIA.

The blast occurred on the evening of November 10 when a Haryana-registered car parked near Gate No.1 of the Red Fort Metro Station exploded, killing at least eight people and injuring dozens.

The NIA was handed over the case after Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Tuesday took stock of the investigation and the multi-state searches being conducted in the Delhi blast case, reiterating Prime Minister Narendra Modi's resolve to bring the culprits to justice.

Chairing a meeting at his residence with top security officials, HM Shah issued strict instructions to officials to get to the bottom of the conspiracy at the earliest.

More than 1,000 CCTV footage clips are being scanned by investigative agencies, which suspect that the car explosion could have been a suicide attack aimed at causing maximum damage, Delhi Police sources said.

Investigative agencies are also monitoring social media activity and collecting mobile phone dump data from several locations across Delhi.

According to police sources, dump data is being retrieved from all mobile phones that were active in and around the Red Fort area. This data may help identify phone numbers and communication links connected to the car bombing.

HM Shah has also directed the NIA, IB, and Delhi Police Special Cell to work in tandem, vowing, "No stone will be left unturned".

High alerts have been issued in Delhi, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, and Mumbai, with security around crowded public places and religious sites enhanced.

--IANS

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