Prime suspect in Kanpur derailment held in Nepal
The National Investigation Agency is likely to send a team to Kathmandu soon to interrogate Hoda.
New Delhi: In a major breakthrough for Indian intelligence agencies, Nepalese national Shamshul Hoda, a suspected ISI agent, has been arrested in Kathmandu by local security agencies after being deported from Dubai. Hoda, who was operating from Dubai and Kathmandu, is said to be the mastermind of the November Kanpur train tragedy.
Sources said Hoda was deported from Dubai after Indian intelligence agencies managed to convince their counterparts about his possible involvement in a train accident near Kanpur last November in which 150 people had died.
The National Investigation Agency (NIA) is likely to send a team to Kathmandu soon to interrogate Hoda. India is likely to seek his extradition also for further investigation. Intelligence sources said Hoda was looking after funding of ISI agents both in Nepal and India and it is suspected that he organised funds for the Kanpur incident.
Hoda’s involvement had come to light after Bihar police arrested one Moti Paswan, who disclosed that he was paid to plant explosives on the railway tracks and that the entire conspiracy was hatched by the ISI.
Intelligence sources said they too had received some inputs that Pakistan’s ISI had paid Rs 30 lakh through Hoda for triggering blasts on rail tracks. Along with Hoda names of three more ISI operatives — Brajesh Giri, Gajendra Sharma and Rakesh Yadav — had also come up during the investigations and a massive hunt has now been launched to track them.
While confirming Hoda’s arrest, a senior intelligence official said, “This arrest is a result of great cooperation between intelligence agencies of different countries. We will now interrogate Hoda to unearth the entire conspiracy.” Both Research & Analysis Wing (R&AW) and the Intelligence Bureau have been working closely with the home ministry and NIA on the case.
Sources said Hoda was arrested along with three of his associates by a special team of the Nepal police at Tribhuvan International Airport on Monday. The three others arrested persons have been identified as Brij Kishor Giri, Ashish Singh and Umesh Kumar Kurmi, all from Kalaiya district in southern Nepal. Giri’s name has also figured in connection with the Kanpur incident.
According to Nepal police Hoda has links with international criminal groups and he has been involved in a number of criminal activities in Nepal and India.