Suspects In Rameshwaram Cafe Blast Case Brought To Bengaluru By NIA For Trial

Two prime accused in the Rameshwaram Cafe blast case were brought to the city by the NIA from Kolkata on transit remand, police sources said on April 13. Both will be taken for a routine medical test, after which they will be produced before the National Investigation Agency (NIA) court in Bengaluru.

A court in Kolkata granted a three-day transit remand to the two accused in the blast case, allowing the NIA to take them to the Karnataka capital on April 12.

The NIA had arrested Mussavir Hussain Shazib and Adbul Matheen Ahmed Taahaa from Kolkata for their alleged role in the March 1 blast at the Rameshwaram Cafe in Bengaluru, which left 10 people injured.

The West Bengal Police assisted in the arrest of the accused from Purba Medinipur district in a joint operation with the NIA. "They had been staying in a hotel in Digha for 3-4 days under different names," said a senior police official from Purba Medinipur district. The suspects had reportedly been hiding in the state for several days. The suspects had reportedly been hiding in the state for several days.

According to NIA, Shazib placed the Improvised Explosive Device (IED) at the cafe and Taahaa was the mastermind, the officials said. Taha and Shazib hail from Thirthahalli in the Shivamogga district of Karnataka. While Taha is an IT engineer, Shazib is suspected to be a key person influencing the Shivamogga Islamic State (IS) module.

Last month, the NIA announced a reward of ₹10 lakh each for those providing information leading to the arrest of these two accused. The NIA took over the probe on March 3.