Delhi: In a major revelation that has come to light in the Delhi blast case, investigators probing the Jaish-e-Mohammed link in the blast and the Faridabad explosives haul have found that Dr Shaheen Saeed was in touch with Afirah Bibi, the wife of Jaish commander and Pulwama attack mastermind Umar Farooq, according to NDTV.
Umar Farooq, the nephew of Jaish-e-Mohammed chief Masood Azhar, was killed in an encounter in the wake of the 2019 Pulwama attack that claimed the lives of 40 personnel of the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF).
Umar’s wife, Afirah Bibi, is reportedly a key figure in Jaish’s newly launched women’s wing, Jamaat-ul-Mominat. Weeks before the blast in Delhi, Afirah joined Shura, the brigade’s advisory council. She works alongside Sadia Azhar, the younger sister of Masood Azhar and the two were in touch with Shaheen Saeed.
Dr Shaheen Saeed, who was working as a senior doctor at Faridabad’s Al-Falah University, was arrested after assault rifles and other ammunition were recovered from her car. The probe has revealed that Shaheen Saeed was assigned to set up Jamaat-ul-Mominat’s India branch and recruit radicalised women for terror operations.
Shaheen Saeed, originally from Lucknow, had earlier worked in several medical colleges before joining Al-Falah University. According to the probe so far, she was Head of the Department of Pharmacology at a medical college in Kanpur from September 2012 to December 2013. Her passport details revealed that she lived in the UAE for two years, from 2016 to 2018.
Shaheen Saeed was married to a doctor, Dr Hayat Zafar, but they separated in 2012. They have two children, who live with Dr Zafar. Her former husband has said he has not been in touch with her since they separated.
Doctors Shaheen, Muzammil, and Umar were working at Al-Falah University in Faridabad. While Shaheen and Muzammil are in custody, Umar is believed to have died when he triggered the car blast near Red Fort, killing 13 people and injuring 20 others on Monday.
