New Delhi: The first visuals of the white Hyundai i20 that rolled up to a red light near Red Fort metro station and exploded, killing nine people, has surfaced. It is CCTV footage taken at a Red Fort parking lot, minutes before the blast.
The 1.30 minute-long video shows the car, bearing the registration number HR 26CE7674, waiting in queue to reach the toll booth. The white colour car then reaches the point and the driver then extends his hand to take in what appears to be a slip from the parking staff there. The time stamp shows the clip is from 6.22 pm, 10 November.
The blast occurred around 6.50 pm near the traffic light close to gate number 1 of the Red Fort Metro station.
The man in the driver’s seat is not fully visible throughout the clip, except for a few seconds when he tilts his head in the direction of the booth while seemingly waiting for change. It is not clear from the footage whether there are more people in the car.
Sources in the Delhi Police said that the car was spotted by CCTV cameras at Darya Ganj, Red Fort area, Kashmere Gate, and near Sunehri Masjid.
Inputs suggest that the vehicle started from Faridabad, then moved to Bahadurgarh, Daryaganj, Suenehri Masjid and then towards the parking lot adjacent to the Red Fort. The vehicle remained at the parking lot there for over three hours at the parking lot as it entered at 3:19 pm and exited at 6:48 pm on Monday. It then left the parking lot towards its intended destination.
The car’s current owner has been identified as Umar Nabi, a doctor from Pulwama, who allegedly belongs to the same terror network as two doctors arrested before Monday’s raid in Faridabad, Haryana.
Nine people have been killed so far after a high-intensity explosion ripped through the slow-moving car. The injured are being treated at the LNJP hospital.
(Edited by Tony Rai)