Darbhanga: One of the witnesses in Bodh Gaya blasts, who were reported missing by National Investigating Agency (NIA) on October 30, returned to his home here on Friday. I am nervous, I am disturbed. I don’t want to speak anything,” Mehre Alam Said journalists who had gathered outside his home here after the news about his presence at his residence surfaced. CPI (M-L) state secretary Dhirendra Jha, who had threatened to observe a fast if Alam did not return to his village was also present there.
Alam’s father, a cab driver, was on protest fast for the past four days on the same demand. He and his family members also refused to speak about his sudden disappearance on October 30.
NIA officials, probing Bodh Gaya and Patna serial blasts, said that he was not an accused but his questioning will continue. Alam, a witness in the probe of activities of Indian Mujahideen, had managed to give security agencies a slip on October 30. NIA had said in a statement that Alam had been served with a notice to appear before the agency on October 29 as a witness in connection with the investigation of illegal activities of the banned terror group. Alam had suo moto appeared before the NIA team which had been camping in Patna in connection with the serial blasts.
During examination, he claimed that one of the NIA accused Hyder Ali, an IM operative and also an accused in the Sunday bombings case was hiding at a place in Mirpur village of Muzaffarpur district, the statement said. A team of NIA and local police accompanied Alam and reached Mirpur on the midnight of October 29 and 30 but had to draw a blank as the accused was not found.
On October 30, Alam left his room on the pretext of relieving himself and did not return. After searching for him in the adjoining areas, the NIA team gave a report to the SHO of the local police station for necessary action. Alam was called only as a witness and not arrested by the NIA, therefore the question of his escape from NIA custody does not arise; NIA had made it clear in the statement. NIA is probing the July 7 blasts in which five persons were injured and last month’s blast near a rally of BJP’s prime ministerial candidate Narendra Modi in which six people were killed and 82 injured. He was initially questioned by the NIA on October 23 in connection with Bodh Gaya blasts case, but was later let off after questioning.
Bureau Report
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