Auto driver’s intel helped police catch 4 suspects
By Vijay Zala, Zahid Qureshi and Yogesh Avasthi
Posted On Thursday, April 22, 2010 (http://www.ahmedabadmirror.com/index.aspx?Page=article§name=News%20-%20Latest§id=2&contentid=20100422201004220157399782e584802)
• The suspicious train passengers, detained on Tuesday, had hired him for an eight-hour tour of the city
“The four, three of whom are Kashmiris, asked him to take them to Kankaria, Lal Darwaja, Iscon Mall, Iskcon temple and ISRO,” said a source familiar with the interrogation of the suspects.
“Jogaji apprised DCP B R Pandor of the situation, who quickly sought instructions from Police Commissioner S K Saikia,” the source said. “Without wasting any time, Saikia asked the Dariapur police, crime branch and Special Operations Group (SOG) to begin a joint search for the Urdu-speaking men.”
On the basis of the information given by the auto driver, a squad, comprising 35-40 officers, searched guesthouses and hotels in Kalupur at 9.15 pm. The team, led by DCP (crime) Abhay Chudasma and DySP (SOG) Tarun Barot, found out that the suspects had put up at Ritz Inn.
“At about 9.45, the the search party reached the hotel. Hotel staff, however, told them that Khan, Tariq, Niyaz and Ansari, however, had left for the Kalupur station to board Gujarat Mail that was scheduled to depart at 10 pm,” said another reliable source.
At this moment, police officers thought on their feet and viewed footage of CCTV cameras installed inside the hotel. After having a good luck at the footage of the suspects, the team rushed to the railway station. “The train was in motion when police personnel reached there. They, however, sprinted to get on board,” the source stated. “They pulled the chain four times and began their search.”
DySP Barot spotted that Khan, Tariq, Niyaz and Ansari in A3 coach of the train and rounded them up. At 10.13 pm, the train halted at Maninagar railway yard, where cops got off with the suspects. According to the source, the four people were taken to the crime branch’s office in Gaekwad Haveli. A laptop and mobile phones were seized from them.
Ansari hails from Ludhiana, Punjab, while the other three are from Srinagar. They have reportedly told cops that they are garment sellers and arrived in city to explore business opportunities. The police are now trying to find out the people these men met and all the places they visited.
Who are the four passengers?
Mohammad Shafi Khan (56), Tariq Ahmed Mishigar (48), Niyaz Ahmed Mishigar (26) and Mohammad Akram Ansari (50) are the four people who were picked up from Gujarat Mail on Tuesday night. It remains to be seen whether these are the men’s real identities. However, these are the names mentioned in their railway reservation form. Ansari hails from Ludhiana, while the other three are from Srinagar. They have reportedly told cops that they are garment sellers and arrived in city to explore business opportunities.
Why were they detained ?
According to a source familiar with their interrogation, the four hired an auto at 11 am on Tuesday and visited Kankaria, Lal Darwaja, Iscon Mall, Iskcon temple and ISRO. The trips, startlingly, lasted for more than eight hours. All the while, they spoke mostly in Urdu. Surprisingly, they did not buy anything during the entire day. At about 8.25 pm, one of them uttered: “Hum log train se nikal jate hain (let us leave by train)”.
How were they picked up?
Khan, Tariq, Niyaz and Ansari were detained in a dramatic manner on Tuesday night. After being tipped off by an auto driver, cops launched a search for the men at hotels in Kalupur at about 9.15 pm. Police personnel came to know that they had put up at Ritz Inn in Kalupur. By the time cops reached there, the four had left for Kalupur station to board Gujarat Mail. The train began to chug out of the station at 10 pm, but cops ran after it to get on board. They found the suspects stopped the train and whisked them away.
Intriguing aspects
A Kalupur-based travel agency submitted the reservation form on behalf of the men at counter number 8 of the reservation centre at 4.23 pm on Tuesday. The agency booked tickets on Gujarat Mail under tatkal category. The train travels from Ahmedabad to Mumbai. The tickets, however, were booked for journey till Surat. Strangely, their residential addresses were not been mentioned in the form. Their place of residence was mentioned as Ritz Inn, a hotel in Kalupur where they had put up after arriving in the city.
Posted On Thursday, April 22, 2010 (http://www.ahmedabadmirror.com/index.aspx?Page=article§name=News%20-%20Latest§id=2&contentid=20100422201004220157399782e584802)
• The suspicious train passengers, detained on Tuesday, had hired him for an eight-hour tour of the city
• He reported them to Dariapur cops after he found something amiss about their conversations in Urdu
Four suspicious people on board Gujarat Mail were detained in a dramatic police operation, which involved an on-foot chase after the train, on Tuesday night. The information about these men, who have apparently made puzzling visits to various places in the city, did not come from any intelligence agency. It was an alert autorickshaw driver who tipped off cops after finding something amiss about the men.
“The four, three of whom are Kashmiris, asked him to take them to Kankaria, Lal Darwaja, Iscon Mall, Iskcon temple and ISRO,” said a source familiar with the interrogation of the suspects.“During these trips, which startlingly continued for more than eight hours, the four spoke mostly in Urdu. They visited malls, but didn’t buy anything, stoking the auto guy’s suspicion. At 8.25 pm, the men got off the auto outside Moti Mahal Hotel in Kalupur. A few moments before that, one of them uttered: “Hum log train se nikal jate hain (let us leave by train)”.
This further strengthened the driver’s doubts. He then drove to Prem Darwaza and met a Dariapur constable, Vinu Parmar. “He described the suspicious behaviour of Khan, Tariq, his son Niyaz and Ansari to Vinu, who then alerted his superior officer, Inspector Jogaji Parmar,” the source said.
The information provided by the driver spurred frantic phone calls among cops, already on high vigil because of the arrest of Hizbul operative Bashir Ahmed Baba and forthcoming Swarnim Gujarat celebrations.“Jogaji apprised DCP B R Pandor of the situation, who quickly sought instructions from Police Commissioner S K Saikia,” the source said. “Without wasting any time, Saikia asked the Dariapur police, crime branch and Special Operations Group (SOG) to begin a joint search for the Urdu-speaking men.”
On the basis of the information given by the auto driver, a squad, comprising 35-40 officers, searched guesthouses and hotels in Kalupur at 9.15 pm. The team, led by DCP (crime) Abhay Chudasma and DySP (SOG) Tarun Barot, found out that the suspects had put up at Ritz Inn.
“At about 9.45, the the search party reached the hotel. Hotel staff, however, told them that Khan, Tariq, Niyaz and Ansari, however, had left for the Kalupur station to board Gujarat Mail that was scheduled to depart at 10 pm,” said another reliable source.
At this moment, police officers thought on their feet and viewed footage of CCTV cameras installed inside the hotel. After having a good luck at the footage of the suspects, the team rushed to the railway station. “The train was in motion when police personnel reached there. They, however, sprinted to get on board,” the source stated. “They pulled the chain four times and began their search.”
DySP Barot spotted that Khan, Tariq, Niyaz and Ansari in A3 coach of the train and rounded them up. At 10.13 pm, the train halted at Maninagar railway yard, where cops got off with the suspects. According to the source, the four people were taken to the crime branch’s office in Gaekwad Haveli. A laptop and mobile phones were seized from them.
Ansari hails from Ludhiana, Punjab, while the other three are from Srinagar. They have reportedly told cops that they are garment sellers and arrived in city to explore business opportunities. The police are now trying to find out the people these men met and all the places they visited.
Who are the four passengers?
Mohammad Shafi Khan (56), Tariq Ahmed Mishigar (48), Niyaz Ahmed Mishigar (26) and Mohammad Akram Ansari (50) are the four people who were picked up from Gujarat Mail on Tuesday night. It remains to be seen whether these are the men’s real identities. However, these are the names mentioned in their railway reservation form. Ansari hails from Ludhiana, while the other three are from Srinagar. They have reportedly told cops that they are garment sellers and arrived in city to explore business opportunities.
Why were they detained ?
According to a source familiar with their interrogation, the four hired an auto at 11 am on Tuesday and visited Kankaria, Lal Darwaja, Iscon Mall, Iskcon temple and ISRO. The trips, startlingly, lasted for more than eight hours. All the while, they spoke mostly in Urdu. Surprisingly, they did not buy anything during the entire day. At about 8.25 pm, one of them uttered: “Hum log train se nikal jate hain (let us leave by train)”.
How were they picked up?
Khan, Tariq, Niyaz and Ansari were detained in a dramatic manner on Tuesday night. After being tipped off by an auto driver, cops launched a search for the men at hotels in Kalupur at about 9.15 pm. Police personnel came to know that they had put up at Ritz Inn in Kalupur. By the time cops reached there, the four had left for Kalupur station to board Gujarat Mail. The train began to chug out of the station at 10 pm, but cops ran after it to get on board. They found the suspects stopped the train and whisked them away.
Intriguing aspects
A Kalupur-based travel agency submitted the reservation form on behalf of the men at counter number 8 of the reservation centre at 4.23 pm on Tuesday. The agency booked tickets on Gujarat Mail under tatkal category. The train travels from Ahmedabad to Mumbai. The tickets, however, were booked for journey till Surat. Strangely, their residential addresses were not been mentioned in the form. Their place of residence was mentioned as Ritz Inn, a hotel in Kalupur where they had put up after arriving in the city.
