'He Is Innocent': Families Of Delhi Blast Suspects Arrested From Faridabad & Mumbra Deny Terror Links

Nuh/Thane: Amid ongoing investigation into the terror attack near Delhi's Red Fort, the family of Maulvi Hafiz Mohammad Ishtiyaq, one of the suspects arrested from Haryana's Faridabad in connection with explosives case linked to Delhi blast, has appealed for justice, claiming that he is "innocent".

Ishtiyaq, a native of Singar village in Nuh district, serves as an Imam at the Al-Falah University campus mosque in Faridabad. He has four brothers, all of whom work as Imams in different mosques and manage farming at home. Following Ishtiyaq's arrest, his brothers Hafiz Saddam and Hafiz Mubeen said that Ishtiyaq "could never be involved in such acts" and urged local authorities to conduct a fair and transparent investigation.

They said, "Ishtiyaq had visited his native village about two months ago to meet his elderly mother. He he has been living near the Al-Falah campus for the last 20 years, after moving out of the village."

"All the allegations against him (Ishtiyaq) are false. Al-Falah University had provided him accommodation near the campus. We came to know through the media that Dr Muzammil, an Assistant Professor who was staying as a tenant in his house, had been arrested. Soon, our brother was also detained. We have no information about his whereabouts and have been unable to contact his family in Dhauj village. We are completely shattered," said Istiyaq's brother.

Meanwhile, in Mumbra of Maharashtra's Thane district, the wife of retired Professor Ibrahim Abidi, whose name has appeared in some reports related to the blast probe, has strongly refuted claims of her husband's links with the case. She said her husband is a retired academic who has "no links with any terrorist activity or the accused".

On Tuesday (November 11), the state's Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS) raided the house of Ibrahim Abidi in Mumbra, and subsequently seized mobile phones, hard disks and laptops after a search. Moreover, another raid was conducted at the house of his first wife in Kurla.

Ibrahim Abidi's second wife Mahjabeen Abidi said her husband has no connection with any terror activity. "The search team had a warrant. The officials conducted a search for nearly three hours but nothing objectionable was found. We have lodged a complaint with the Police and will appeal in the High Court," she said.

Mahjabeen, who herself works as a teacher and teaches Tablighi lessons from the Quran, said her husband worked as a Professor in a college in Byculla for 35 years before retiring. The couple has been living in Mumbra for the last five years.

She said Ibrahim was taken into custody and brought to his first wife's home in Kurla for further questioning. "Police took away our computer hard disk and mobile phones. Since then, we have had no information about his condition," she said.

Neighbours too claimed that they never had any issues with Abidi family.

Mahjabeen said, "Our whole family is deeply disturbed after Ibrahim's name was linked to the Delhi blast case. We will continue to seek justice through legal means."

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