As the investigation into the Jaish-e-Mohammad-linked terror module responsible for the Red Fort blast grows deeper, a disturbing pattern has begun to emerge.

Al Falah University in Faridabad, Haryana—once known mainly as a private educational institution—now appears repeatedly in terror-related investigations. Over the past weeks, several doctors working with the university were arrested for their role in the module connected to the blast. During these inquiries, investigators stumbled upon another name from the same institution, a man linked to multiple bombings across India in 2007 and 2008.

This man is Mirza Shadab Baig, described in security dossiers as the prime accused in the 2008 serial bombings in Delhi and Ahmedabad. According to multiple reports, Baig has been missing for years and is believed to be hiding in Pakistan under protection from ISI-backed networks. His name resurfaced now because of the ongoing probe into the Red Fort blast module, creating a chilling connection between past and present terror activity.

Who exactly is IM terrorist Mirza Shadab Baig?

Mirza Shadab Baig hails from Baridi Calganj village in Uttar Pradesh’s Azamgarh district, a region that has repeatedly appeared in investigations into Indian Mujahideen activities. He also reportedly lived with his family in Raja ka Qila Mohalla in the same district. Baig studied at Al Falah University, completing his B.Tech in Electronics and Instrumentation from Al Falah Engineering College, Faridabad, in 2007.

Investigating agencies first identified his link with the university during the 2008 Ahmedabad blast probe. Now, those same connections have surfaced once again as investigators examine the Red Fort blast module. Baig was last traced in Afghanistan in 2019 and carries a ₹1 lakh bounty on his head, according to police sources and media reports.

How Baig became a key figure in the 2008 serial blasts

Reports indicate that Baig headed the Azamgarh module of the Indian Mujahideen (IM), earlier known as SIMI—Students Islamic Movement of India. Its founding members, Riyaz Bhatkal (Riyaz Ismail Shahbandri) and Iqbal Bhatkal (Iqbal Shahbandri), are also believed to be living in Pakistan under state protection.

Baig, who had spent some time in Saudi Arabia, helped merge two terror networks—one operating from Azamgarh and another from Delhi. Intelligence files suggest that he recruited several young men into jihadi activity, expanding IM’s footprint across India.

Police records from the 2008 Delhi serial blasts show that Baig lived in Zakir Nagar, Delhi, where he hosted radicalised youth and indoctrinated them with extremist material. He carried out reconnaissance for the Delhi and Ahmedabad blasts and was directly involved in planting explosives at India Gate. After the explosions, police recovered his ID cards from his rented flat.

His involvement did not end there. Baig’s network coordinated with operatives across states, playing a central role in arranging explosives for the Jaipur serial blasts. He reportedly travelled to Udupi, Karnataka, to collect materials for the 2008 Jaipur attack and supplied detonators to Riyaz and Yasin Bhatkal.

He was also one of the conspirators in the German Bakery blast in Pune (2010), a case widely reported by media at the time.

The waves of serial blasts that shook India

Between 2007 and 2008, India witnessed a horrifying series of bombings across major cities. The first major incident occurred in May 2007 in Gorakhpur, Uttar Pradesh. In the crowded Golghar Market area, just 4 km from the Gorakhnath Mandir, three explosives packed in lunch boxes exploded one after another, injuring six people.

Investigations later revealed involvement of Indian Mujahideen and Harkat-ul-Jihad-al-Islami (HuJI). Shockingly, the then Samajwadi Party government attempted to withdraw the case against two accused men—Khalid Mujahid and Tariq Qasmi—even though the STF had recovered a large quantity of explosives from them. This political interference became a major controversy at the time.

The 2008 Jaipur serial explosions

In May 2008, Jaipur witnessed one of the deadliest attacks in its history. Within just 15 minutes, nine explosions ripped through some of the busiest markets and tourist spots—Manak Chowk Khanda, Chandpole Gate, Badi Chaupad, Chhoti Chaupad, Tripolia Gate, Johri Bazar and Sanganeri Gate. Another unexploded bomb was found near Chandpole Bazar and safely defused.

The explosives were rigged to bicycles and packed with metal splinters, RDX, and ammonium nitrate to cause maximum casualties. Over 71 people were killed and more than 185 injured.

The Indian Mujahideen claimed responsibility, and investigators later found HuJI Bangladesh links as well. Four terrorists—Saifur Rehman, Mohammad Saif, Sarwar Azmi, and Mohammad Salman—were given life sentences by a special court in April this year. The mastermind, Aatif Amin, was killed in the Batla House encounter in Delhi in September 2008.

The 2008 Ahmedabad bombings

On 26 July 2008, Ahmedabad came under attack with 21 bomb blasts at 14 locations across the city—Khadia, Raipur, Sarangpur, Maninagar, Hatkeshwar Circle, Bapunagar, Thakkarbapa Nagar, Jawahar Chowk, Govindwadi, Isanpur, Narol, and Sarkhej. All explosions occurred within 70–80 minutes, creating panic and chaos.

According to Gujarat Police, the attack was meant as retaliation for the 2002 post-Godhra riots. 56 people were killed, while 243 suffered injuries. Two bombs went off inside hospitals—L.G. Hospital and Ahmedabad Civil Hospital’s Trauma Centre—causing terrifying scenes that India remembers to this day.

In February 2022, a Gujarat court convicted 49 of the 77 accused, awarding 38 death sentences and 11 life imprisonments—one of the biggest terror-related judgments in Indian history.

That same year, in September 2008, five coordinated blasts occurred across Delhi—Ghaffar Market, Connaught Place, Barakhamba Road—killing about 25 people and injuring over 90. The IM claimed responsibility via an email.

Following these blasts, Delhi Police tracked the terrorists to Batla House in Jamia Nagar, leading to the encounter that would later become one of India’s most politically manipulated incidents.

The Batla House encounter

Just weeks after the Delhi blasts, a Delhi Police team led by famed encounter specialist Mohan Chand Sharma reached L-18, Batla House, acting on precise intelligence that IM operatives involved in the serial blasts were hiding there.

A gunfight broke out. Terrorists Atif Ameen and Mohammad Sajid were killed, while Mohammad Saif was arrested. Shahzad and Junaid managed to escape. During the exchange, Inspector Sharma received critical injuries and later died—a loss deeply mourned by the force. Head Constable Balwinder was also injured.

One of the escaped terrorists is now believed to have become an ISIS recruiter, as reported in media investigations.

Despite the sacrifice of a decorated police officer, what followed was an aggressive attempt by certain political groups to label the encounter as fake. This episode exposed how far the Congress ecosystem and allied parties—like TMC and AAP—went to appease extremist sympathisers by attacking the police instead of confronting terrorism.

When the death of terrorists brought tears to Sonia Gandhi

Congress leader Digvijaya Singh publicly claimed that the Batla House encounter was staged. In 2012, during an election rally in Uttar Pradesh, senior Congress leader Salman Khurshid made an even more shocking claim.

He said that Sonia Gandhi cried after seeing the photos of the terrorists who were killed. His exact statement was:
“When we showed Sonia Gandhi the images of the ‘incident’, she started crying bitterly and with folded hands, she said Please do not show me these pictures. Immediately go and speak to the Wazir-e-Azam (Dr Manmohan Singh) and discuss the matter. I talked to the PM and it was decided that the matter will be further investigated.”

This statement sparked national outrage because it appeared to express sympathy not for the police officer who died but for the terrorists neutralised in the operation.

Congress ecosystem’s familiar pattern of whitewashing Islamic terror

While senior politicians attempted to mislead the public about the serial blasts and the Batla House encounter, activists and left-leaning groups began a smear campaign against the security forces and the then Gujarat government. Instead of supporting the investigation, they shifted blame onto the state and central agencies, echoing a pattern seen repeatedly whenever Islamic terrorism is exposed.

A similar script played out after the recent Red Fort blast. Congress leader Husain Dalwai went as far as giving a clean chit to the terrorists and blamed the RSS instead. He even called the attack a “repercussion” of supposed injustices in Jammu and Kashmir, echoing the sentiments of former J&K Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti, who justified the attack by claiming it was carried out by “frustrated terrorists.”

This repeated pattern of justification and sympathy towards extremist elements continues to raise serious questions about political priorities and national security.