The National Investigation Agency (NIA) has established that Dr Umar Un Nabi deliberately triggered the explosive device used in last year’s Red Fort terror attack. The agency said Nabi used a “command mechanism” linked to a piezoelectric plate attached to his shoe. This effectively made the bomb a foot- or shoe-operated device. The finding rules out the possibility that the explosion happened accidentally after Nabi panicked.

The NIA filed its charge sheet against 10 accused in May this year. A Delhi court took cognisance of it on August 29. HT reviewed the document. The attack killed 12 people, including Nabi, injured 29 and damaged 24 vehicles. A group of doctors linked to Ansar Ghazwat-ul-Hind (AGuH), an affiliate of Al-Qaida in the Indian Subcontinent (AQIS), carried out the attack.

Forensic reports confirmed that a vehicle-borne IED caused the blast. The agency recovered a Red-Tape shoe from the site with a metal piece attached to its heel. According to the NIA, this indicated the use of a command mechanism to control the IED. A body-part swab identified as Nabi’s also tested positive for TATP and ammonium nitrate. The agency said this confirmed that Nabi was inside the car and initiated the explosion himself.

The IED was developed by accused Jasir Bilal Wani, an explosives expert, using a transducer technique. A piezoelectric plate converts mechanical energy such as pressure or vibration into electrical energy. It can also work in the reverse direction. The NIA said Wani handed the plate to Nabi. Its recovery from Nabi’s shoe and subsequent examination by explosives experts led investigators to conclude that he used the mechanism to trigger the explosive-laden Hyundai i20.

NIA said Nabi knew the Red Fort area well and visited it multiple times between December 2023 and May 2025. The agency identified 12 such visits involving Nabi, Muzamil Shakeel and Shaheed Saeed. The group also purchased electronic items for the IED from the area.

The charge sheet said the accused viewed the Red Fort as a symbol of the Indian state. Handwritten notes recovered from Nabi’s premises at Al-Falah University showed that AGuH members opposed democracy and sought the imposition of Shariat laws in India. The agency said, “... the accused considered the Red Fort to be symbolic of the Indian state and handwritten notes seized from Nabi’s premises at Al-Falah University clearly mentioned that the AGuH members were against democracy and wanted the imposition of Shariat laws in India. Therefore, causing the blast near Red Fort, besides being a terrorist act, also amounts to waging war against the State. With this view, they had visited the adjoining areas of the Red Fort several times.”

The NIA also said Nabi, Shakeel and Saeed sought to radicalise students and fellow doctors. Nabi allegedly persuaded Wani and Yasir Ahmad Dar to join the group and become suicide bombers. Dar was given the code name “45” after meetings with Nabi and ideologue Irfan Ahmad Wagay. In August 2025, Nabi asked Dar to be prepared for ‘Shahadat’. When Dar refused, Nabi took his phone and deleted Telegram chats.

The agency described Saeed as a key financier. Shakeel married her in 2023 and allegedly radicalised her before introducing her to AGuH Interim members. Saeed provided ₹16 lakh to Adeel Ahmed Rather through Shakeel. The money was used to support the group and procure arms, ammunition and explosive materials. NIA also recovered cash from her locker and a photograph showing her carrying an AK-47.

Investigators recovered several documents and digital material from the accused. One document, ‘How to become an assassin-the preparation’, contained instructions on combat, firearms, ambushes and other covert operations. Another, ‘Lone Mujahid Pocket Book’, compiled operational material involving explosives, fire, firearms and vehicles. Al-Qaeda’s Inspire magazine published it.