New Delhi [India], November 29 (HBTV): Al-Falah University in Haryana has come under heightened scrutiny after intelligence agencies uncovered fresh details linking a former student to terror activities. The development follows the arrest of Dr Umar Nabi, accused in the November 10 Delhi blast, whose association with the university has raised renewed concerns.
According to intelligence reports, Nabi is not the first individual associated with Al-Falah University to be linked to terrorism. One alumna from the institution has previously been found involved in terror-related activities.
One of the most prominent names to resurface is that of Mirza Shadab Beg, described as a key member of the Indian Mujahideen. Beg completed his B.Tech in Electronics and Instrumentation from Al-Falah Engineering College in Faridabad in 2007. A year later, he was found involved in the 2008 Ahmedabad serial blasts.
Beg has been absconding for years, with intelligence sources believing he is currently hiding in Afghanistan.
The Delhi blast has prompted a renewed wave of investigations into Al-Falah University, located in Dhauj, Faridabad. Originally established as the Al-Falah School of Engineering and Technology, the institution was granted university status in 2014 under the Haryana Private Universities Amendment Act.
Intelligence inputs also highlight Beg’s role in the 2008 Jaipur bombings. Prior to the attack, he reportedly travelled to Udupi to procure explosives. He later supplied Riaz and Yasin Bhatkal with detonators and ball bearings used to assemble improvised explosive devices (IEDs).
Due to his background in instrumentation engineering, Beg was considered highly skilled in bomb-making.
Around 15 days before the Ahmedabad blasts, Beg is said to have conducted extensive reconnaissance of the city. He worked with three teams, overseeing planning, logistics, IED fitting, and bomb assembly.
His name had earlier surfaced in connection with the 2007 Gorakhpur serial blasts, which left six people injured. After his links with the Indian Mujahideen came to light, Gorakhpur Police seized his property.
Beg has remained on the run since the Indian Mujahideen network was exposed in 2008. Authorities announced a INR 1 lakh reward for information leading to his arrest. Despite several crackdowns, he remains untraceable, with the last reported sighting in Afghanistan in 2019.
Al-Falah University has also come under scrutiny after the arrest of several doctors in connection with the November 10 blast near Delhi’s Red Fort, which killed 15 people and injured many others. The suicide bomber, Dr Umar un Nabi, a resident of Kashmir, was associated with the university.
The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has initiated an investigation against the Al-Falah group based on two FIRs filed by the Delhi Police Crime Branch. The allegations state that Al-Falah University made fraudulent and misleading claims regarding National Assessment and Accreditation Council (NAAC) accreditation, with the intention of deceiving students and stakeholders for wrongful gain.
A Delhi court, in an early Wednesday ruling, remanded Al-Falah Group Chairman Jawad Ahmed Siddiqui to 13 days of ED custody, till December 1. The remand order noted that there were reasonable grounds to believe he had committed the offence of money laundering linked to large-scale fraud, forged accreditation claims, and diversion of funds from the Al-Falah University ecosystem.
Meanwhile, the National Investigation Agency (NIA) continues to explore multiple angles to unravel the conspiracy behind the Delhi bombing. Several teams of the agency are pursuing leads and conducting searches across states to identify every individual involved in the attack.
(ANI)