Autorickshaw involved in the blast kept near Padil-Pumpwell Main Road in Mangaluru on Sunday. The moving autorickshaw caught fire, after a minor blast reportedly occurred from a bag being carried by the passenger in the city on November 19, 2022.
| Photo Credit: MANJUNATH HS
The Karnataka police have now confirmed the identity of the auto rickshaw bomber in Mangaluru as Mohammed Shariq, 24, hailing from Teerthahalli and a terror accused charged with links to Islamic State (IS), on the run since September 2022.
Police have verified his photos in their records and his family has also identified the injured person in the hospital as Mohammed Shariq, via a phone, and are on their way to the hospital, a senior police official said.
Involvement in Shivamogga stabbing case
Probing a stabbing incident in Shivamogga around Independence Day over putting up a photo of V. D. Savarkar, Shivamogga Rural Police had busted an alleged terror module with alleged links to Islamic State. Police had arrested Maaz Muneer Ahmed, 22 and Syed Yasin, 21 and recovered explosive materials from the duo.
Investigations had uncovered that they were radicalised by Mohammed Shariq and they had learnt making bombs through PDF files, videos and several materials sent to them by Shariq. The duo had prepared an IED and tested it successfully on the banks of Tungabhadra, police had alleged. However, Shariq had fled from his residence and had been absconding till date.
Mohammed Shariq and Maaz Ahmed were earlier arrested by Mangaluru City Police in 2020 over graffiti they wrote on the walls of two buildings in the coastal city, in support of Lashakr-e-Taiba and Taliban, and were later released on bail. Maaz Ahmed was again busted in the terror module case in Sepetmber 2022, even as Shariq the prime accused in the case was at large.
Links to Al Hind IS module
Mohammed Shariq is said to be associated with Matheen Ahmed Taha, also hailing from Shivamogga and a member of Al Hind IS module, active in Karnataka and Tamil Nadu. The Bengaluru-based Al Hind IS module was allegedly put together by Mehboob Pasha, a resident of Gurappana Palya, Bengaluru and Khaja Moideen, a resident of Cuddalore, Tamil Nadu, accused in several murder cases of Hindutva leaders in the neighbouring state.
The module was busted by the National Investigation Agency (NIA) in 2020 and chargesheets filed in 2021, alleging the group wanted to establish an IS province inside the jungles of South India. However, Matheen Ahmed Taha, a prominent member of this group, is still at large and Mohammed Shariq is suspected to be his associate.
A CCTV camera footage from a nearby commercial building showed the moving vehicle suddenly engulfed in smoke and coming to a halt. The vehicle however appeared not to have received much damage.
| Video Credit:
Special Arrangement