NEW DELHI — A federal manhunt has tracked the surviving mastermind of the Red Fort terror bombing across the Durand Line into Afghanistan. Exactly one year after a vehicle-borne improvised explosive device tore through the national capital, killing 11 people and ending a 14-year hiatus in Delhi bombings, the National Investigation Agency is closing in on Muzafar Ahmad Rather. He slipped out of India in August 2025. He remains at large. Now, federal prosecutors are moving Interpol to issue an immediate Red Notice after securing a non-bailable arrest warrant from the Patiala House special court.
Two comprehensive chargesheets filed by the NIA document how 10 men, marshaled under an Al-Qaeda in the Indian Subcontinent offshoot named Ansar Ghazwat-ul-Hind Interim, planned and executed the November 10, 2025 strike. Suicide bomber Dr Umar Un Nabi drove the explosive-laden car into the Red Fort perimeter, dying instantly in the blast. Nine co-accused sit behind bars. Only Rather escaped overseas.
The terror cell formed in the shadow of failure. Investigative records show Nabi, Shakeel, and Rather initially attempted to perform hijrat to Taliban-ruled Afghanistan, which they viewed as an ideal Islamic sanctuary. Directed by an online handler code-named Ukasha, the trio flew to Turkey on March 1, 2022. A Syrian operative named Muhammad seized their passports in Istanbul to process Afghan visas. The paperwork stalled. Visas were denied. Empty-handed, the men returned to India on March 22, 2022.
Back home, Indian security forces had eliminated AGuH’s top brass, including commanders Zakir Musa, Muzammil Tantrey, and Hashim. To fill the leadership vacuum, Nabi summoned a clandestine conclave at Eidgah in Srinagar between April and May 2022. The operatives founded AGuH Interim as a temporary bridge to Al-Qaeda. Federal agents subsequently raided Nabi’s flat at Al-Falah University, recovering a handwritten organizational roster that exposed the cell's chain of command.
| Cell Member | Operational Role | Legal Status |
|---|---|---|
| Dr Umar Un Nabi | Operations-in-Charge / Suicide Bomber | Deceased (Killed in Blast) |
| Dr Adeel Ahmed Rather | Amir (Designated Cell Chief) | Chargesheeted / In Judicial Custody |
| Dr Muzamil Shakeel | Khazanchi (Treasurer & Logistics) | Chargesheeted / In Judicial Custody |
| Irfan Ahmad Wagay | Mufti (Ideologue & Kashmir Recruiter) | Chargesheeted / In Judicial Custody |
| Muzafar Ahmad Rather | Core Conspirator |
"The high-intensity Vehicle-Borne Improvised Explosive Device blast caused extensive damage to property and claimed innocent lives," the NIA stated in its submissions before Patiala House Courts, detailing an investigation that spanned Jammu and Kashmir, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra, Gujarat, and Delhi-NCR.
With nine conspirators remanded to judicial custody facing trial under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act and the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, the Ministry of Home Affairs has authorized international channels to corner Rather. The special NIA court will review the status of the impending Interpol Red Notice at its next case hearing in New Delhi.
| Fugitive (Non-Bailable Warrant / Afghanistan) |