The National Investigation Agency (NIA) said on Wednesday, January 11 that they arrested two persons in connection with the cooker blast case in Mangaluru on November 19, 2022. The accused have been identified as Mazin Abdul Rahman of Dakshina Kannada and Nadeem Ahmed KA of Davanagere. This follows the arrests of Reshan Thajauddin Sheikh from Udupi and Huziar Farhan Baig from Shivamogga by the NIA on January 5, as well as the arrests of two other individuals connected to the case.
On November 19, the prime accused Mohammed Shariq, hailing from Thirthahalli in Shivamogga district, was travelling in an auto rickshaw with a pressure cooker fitted with a detonator, wires, and batteries when it exploded on the outskirts of Mangaluru. He is currently being treated at a hospital in Bengaluru after suffering burn injuries. The vehicle driver also sustained injuries in the explosion. Police also said that their handlers outside India had sent a document to guide Shariq and his accomplices in making a bomb. Police had said there was a plan to unleash large-scale destruction across Karnataka.
Days after the NIA took over the investigation, a little-known outfit Islamic Resistance Council (IRC) had reportedly claimed responsibility for the blast. A screenshot of the social media post stated that one of IRC’s Mujahid brothers Mohammed Shariq attempted to attack a Hindu temple in Kadri. "We the Islamic Resistance Council (IRC) would like to convey the message: One of our Mujahid brother Mohammed Shariq attempted to attack the Hindu temple in Kadri (in Dakshina Kannada district), a bastion of the Saffron terrorists in Mangaluru," the post read.