Delhi blast: Doctors among 3 detained; Crime Branch registers FIRs against Al-Falah University

New Delhi: Delhi Police have detained three individuals — among them two doctors associated with Haryana’s Al-Falah University — as part of the investigation into the deadly blast near the Red Fort. Meanwhile, two separate FIRs have been registered against the university over alleged irregularities highlighted by the UGC and NAAC, officials said on Saturday.

The detentions and new cases come amid an expanding multi-agency probe into the explosion, which killed 13 people, and the activities of people linked to the university.

The Crime Branch filed two FIRs on charges of cheating and forgery after the University Grants Commission and the National Assessment and Accreditation Council reported major regulatory violations by the institution.

A police team also visited the university’s Okhla office on Saturday to gather information on individuals under scrutiny.

Two doctors, Mohammad and Mustakim — both known to Dr Umar Nabi, the driver of the Hyundai i20 that exploded near the Red Fort on Monday — were picked up during coordinated raids across Dhauj, Nuh, and nearby areas late Friday. The operations were conducted jointly by the Special Cell and the NIA.

Sources said the two doctors were allegedly in touch with Dr Muzammil Ganaie, who was previously arrested in connection with what investigators describe as a “white-collar terror module.” They were also reportedly close to Umar.

Preliminary questioning suggests that one of the detained doctors was in Delhi on the day of the blast for an interview at AIIMS. Police are verifying their statements to determine their links to Ganaie and whether they played any role in the wider plot.

Another man, Dinesh alias Dabbu, has also been detained for allegedly selling fertiliser without a licence. Investigators suspect the terror module collected about ₹26 lakh to procure explosive materials and spent ₹3 lakh of it on NPK fertiliser, which can be used to make bombs. Police are probing whether Dinesh supplied fertiliser to the group and whether his involvement went beyond illegal sales.

Officers have questioned a tea vendor in the Wazirpur Industrial Area, where Umar stopped for 10–15 minutes before the blast. The vendor recalled a masked customer briefly sitting at the stall. “Police asked whether he had tea or stayed long. We don’t pay attention to every visitor,” he said after being released.

Investigators have also requested visitor logs from a mosque near Asaf Ali Road’s Ramlila Maidan, where Umar was seen hours before the explosion. The imam of a Faridabad mosque — said to be close to Muzammil — was questioned as well. Muzammil reportedly frequented the mosque during visits by the Tablighi Jamaat.

Police have compiled a detailed record of all vehicles that entered the Sunehri Masjid parking area during the three hours that Umar’s car was parked there. Teams from Delhi Police and bomb detection units remain stationed at the site, checking every vehicle that has been parked since the incident.

Vehicles present at the time of the blast are being inspected first and returned once cleared. Investigators are also showing Umar’s photograph to drivers and vehicle owners to determine whether he interacted with anyone while waiting in the parking lot.

The initial FIR on criminal conspiracy filed by the Delhi Police Special Cell has since been transferred to the NIA.

CCTV footage from inside the Red Fort Metro station shows the moment the blast shook the station, startling commuters and prompting some to move deeper inside for safety.Another CCTV clip from Faridabad shows Umar removing his phone from a small bag and asking someone to charge it.

Faridabad Police spokesperson Yashpal Singh said that, given the high alert, authorities have so far checked roughly 140 mosques, 1,700 tenants, 40 fertiliser and seed shops, 200 guesthouses and inns, 100 second-hand car dealers, and over 500 people from Jammu and Kashmir.

Meanwhile, the Delhi Metro Rail Corporation has reopened entry gates 2 and 3 of the Red Fort Metro station, which had been closed for nearly four days after the explosion. “The gates are now open for commuters,” DMRC announced on X.