Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Tuesday took stock of the investigation and the multi-state searches being conducted in the Delhi blast case, reiterating Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s resolve to bring the culprits to justice.
Chairing a meeting at his residence with top security officials, HM Shah issued strict instructions to officials to get to the bottom of the conspiracy at the earliest. The meeting was attended by Union Home Secretary Govind Mohan, Intelligence Bureau Director Tapan Kumar Deka, Delhi Police Commissioner Satish Golcha and National Investigation Agency (NIA) Director General (DG) Sadanand Vasant Date, while the Jammu and Kashmir Director General of Police (DGP) Nalin Prabhat joined virtually.
A team of more than 500 security officials has been formed to investigate the blast, while security has been ramped up across Delhi-NCR, with NSG commandos deployed at key installations. More than 1,000 CCTV footage clips are being scanned by investigative agencies, which suspect that the car explosion could have been a suicide attack aimed at causing maximum damage, Delhi Police sources said.
Investigative agencies are also monitoring social media activity and collecting mobile phone’ dump data from several locations across Delhi. According to police sources, dump data is being retrieved from all mobile phones that were active in and around the Red Fort area.
This data may help identify phone numbers and communication links connected to the car bombing. HM Shah directed the NIA, IB, and Delhi Police Special Cell to work in tandem, vowing, "No stone will be left unturned".
High alerts have been issued in Delhi, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, and Mumbai, with security around crowded public places and religious sites enhanced. The blast occurred on Monday evening when a Haryana-registered car, a Hyundai i20, near Gate No.1 of the Red Fort Metro Station exploded, killing at least eight people and injuring dozens.
Earlier, Prime Minister Narendra Modi, while speaking in Bhutan, assured action against the conspirators behind the blast. He stated that Indian agencies will get to the bottom of the conspiracy and assured that those behind the blast "will not be spared".
In his remarks at Changlimethang Ground in Thimphu, PM Modi said, "Today, I come here with a very heavy heart. The horrific incident that took place in Delhi yesterday evening has deeply saddened everyone.
I understand the grief of the affected families. Today, the entire nation stands with them. I was in touch with all the agencies investigating this incident throughout last night...Our agencies will get to the bottom of this conspiracy.
The conspirators behind this will not be spared. All those responsible will be brought to justice.” Earlier, the BJP criticised the Congress and its allies for working against national interest and trying to politicise the terror attack.
Amit Malviya, in charge of the BJP's National Information and Technology Department, said on X, “If being shameless and working against national interest had a face, it would look exactly like the Congress.” “The problem with our Opposition and the loony far-Left ecosystem is that they simply do not know how to stand with the country in times of need,” he said.