Pune: The family of Abdul Samad Bhatkal, who was arrested in connection with the Pune German bakery blast has vehemently denied his involvement. They claim he's being framed - that he was at a wedding in Karnataka on the day of the blast.
The wedding video, Samad's supposed alibi, shows him attending it.
"At that time he was here, it was the occasion of my daughter's wedding," said Mohammad Ibrahim Siddibapa, Samad's relative.
"My son is innocent. He cannot do anything like that. At that time he was at home," said Rehana Zarrar, his mother.
Yet this video is no clinching alibi. It is undated. In fact, the wedding card shows the ceremonies took place much earlier on February 5th and 6th.
It is questions like this that the Maharashtra's Anti-Terror Squad (ATS) will have to respond to while trying to establish Samad's links to the Pune blast. Samad's family says he remained in Bhatkal till the reception on February 15. Sources in the ATS say Samad was in Pune on the day of the blast and only returned to Bhatkal on Feb 15.
The other big question is why would Samad travel to Dubai on valid travel documents if he feared being traced?
Is he only a suspect because he's the brother of Indian Mujahideen leader Yasin Bhatkal - the main suspect in the Pune blast, and comes from the same village as the group's founder Riyaz Bhatkal.
These claims have been dismissed by the ATS. They say Samad's arrest was well-planned and based on strong leads.
The ATS says:
- Samad resembles a man seen in German Bakery's CCTV footage
- He may have planted the bomb or helped finance blast
- His call records are being scrutinised
- Interrogation may establish links to co-conspirators
The ATS initially arrested him for a lesser offence under the Arms Act to have time to interrogate him, but with the union home minister going ahead and declaring Samad a prime suspect in the Pune blast, investigators are now under pressure to produce evidence.