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New Delhi: Investigations into the so-called “white-collar” terror module busted after the November 10 car bombing near Delhi’s Red Fort have revealed that the mastermind, Dr Umar‑un‑Nabi, had attempted to recruit a second suicide bomber, but the plan fell through when the recruit backed out at the last minute, officials said on Sunday.
The probe by the National Investigation Agency and the Srinagar Police has uncovered a parallel terror module allegedly orchestrated by Nabi, the doctor-turned-terrorist who was driving the explosive-laden vehicle that detonated near the Red Fort, killing over a dozen people.
According to officials, Nabi had radicalised a Shopian resident, Yasir Ahmed Dar, as a potential suicide bomber. Dar, a school dropout, had been in contact with Nabi on Telegram since 2023. However, during a meeting in August last year, Dar reportedly withdrew from the plan, citing the apple harvest season and the need to help his family, officials said.
Interrogations revealed that Nabi’s status as a medical doctor played a key role in influencing recruits. His professional background made his extremist ideology appear more “credible” and persuasive, investigators noted.
The investigation suggests that Nabi was not just a foot soldier but a strategic recruiter who was attempting to build secondary, independent terror cells to ensure operations could continue even if the leading network were exposed. A recovered voice note from one of the accused contains a recording of bayat (oath of allegiance) to jihad, officials said.
Dar was the second potential suicide bomber Nabi tried to rope in, as the mastermind believed that a human bomber was essential for high-impact attacks. A similar attempt to recruit another individual, Jasir alias Danish, had also failed earlier after he backed out, citing financial hardship and religious objections to suicide.
The wider terror network came to light after Srinagar Police noticed posters linked to the banned Jaish‑e‑Mohammed appearing in Srinagar’s outskirts in October 2025. That trail led to multiple arrests and eventually to Nabi, a 28-year-old doctor from Pulwama, believed to be the most radicalised operative in a network spanning Jammu and Kashmir, Haryana and Uttar Pradesh.
Investigators said Nabi had been planning a major Vehicle-Borne Improvised Explosive Device (VBIED) attack, possibly timed around December 6, the anniversary of the Babri Masjid demolition. The plan collapsed after the arrest of his associate, Dr Muzammil Ahmad Ganaie, and the seizure of large quantities of explosives, triggering panic within the module and culminating in the premature Red Fort blast. Officials said the investigation continues, with agencies now focusing on dismantling remaining sleeper cells and tracing the radicalisation and funding channels behind the interstate terror network.
