SIMI activists produced in court over Ahmedabad blasts

Ahmedabad, August 23 : Gujarat police on Saturday produced four activists of banned Students' Islamic Movement of India (SIMI) suspected of being involved in Ahmedabad bomb blasts in a metropolitan court.

The four accused were brought to Ahmedabad on a transit warrant from Madhya Pradesh jail. However the state police did not bring Safdar Nagori to Ahmedabad for security reasons despite having secured his arrest warrant.

"After interrogating them we have come to know that the training camps were conducted in Kerala and this conspiracy was planned there in which Safdar Nagori and his associates were involved on the basis of which we are bringing him and his associates. We will bring Nagori by Sunday and four of his associates namely Karimuddin Nagori, Ameel Pervez, Shibly and Mohammad Hafiz are being produced today," Abhay Chudasama, Deputy Commissioner of Police of the crime branch told reporters in Ahmedabad.

At least 16 bombs exploded in Ahmedabad on July 26, a day after another set of blasts in Bangalore killed a woman. Three days later, several unexploded bombs were found in the Gujarat's Surat town.

A little-known group called the "Indian Mujahideen" had claimed responsibility for the Ahmedabad attacks. But police said Indian Mujahideen was just "another identity" for SIMI.

SIMI, a Muslim group, has been blamed by police for almost every major bomb attack in India, including explosions in trains in Mumbai two years ago which killed 187 people.

ANI