The Tamil Nadu police have accused Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) state president Annamalai of trying to divert the Coimbatore car blast investigation. In a press release issued on Saturday, October 29, the police department accused Annamalai of trying to divert the probe by expressing opinions about materials that were seized from the spot where the blast took place on October 23. The statement also accused Annamalai of trying to defame the Tamil Nadu police.
Annamalai had earlier alleged that there was ample evidence pointing to a terror attack in Coimbatore, and yet little action was taken despite the union government having issued an alert on October 18. According to the statement from the police department, the circular received on October 18 was shared with all the city and district police officials, and did not mention anything about Coimbatore in particular. “If Tamil Nadu police had received any hints about the (Coimbatore) incident, the police would have conducted raids, seized the explosives and arrested the people involved in the matter. We are asking the former Karnataka police official (Annamalai) to stop spreading fake news and not bring disrepute to the Tamil Nadu police,” the statement further said.
"He (Annamalai) also alleged that the case has been transferred to the National Investigation Agency very late," the statement read, and offered clarification. The two-page statement from the Tamil Nadu Police department explained the procedure followed before a case is transferred to the National Investigation Agency (NIA), and insisted that the state government and the police followed all the required procedures in the Coimbatore case. It also said that in several other cases, the other state governments have taken much longer – even months in some instances – before transferring cases to the NIA.
In such blast incidents, in all states, the local police are the first to book the case and initiate a probe as per the rules, the statement said. When a case is registered under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA) or NIA Act, the concerned police officer submits a report to the state government, which then informs the union government, it said. “Later, the union government will order the NIA to take up the probe within 15 days, depending upon the degree of the crime,” it added. While this is what the NIA Act says, in reality, the union government order may take several months, the police statement said.
The case was transferred to the NIA following a recommendation by CM Stalin on October 26. The statement said that usually in such cases, until the order transferring the case to NIA is passed by the union government, the local intelligence officer conducts the investigation. “The (Coimbatore) case has been transferred to the NIA after the state government submitted its report to the union government by following the law without any delays in this case,” it claimed. “In some significant cases, the Union Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) would order the NIA to initiate the probe. But Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin recommended the NIA investigation (in the Coimbatore case),"the statement said.
"Where is the delay in this process?" the Tamil Nadu police asked Annamalai. "Annamalai alleged that the MHA informed about the Coimbatore blast. But that is absurd. He mentioned the general circular issued by the MHA to all the state and union governments. There is nothing particularly mentioned about Coimbatore,” the statement said. “He tries to create a false scenario by accusing the police of ignoring the warning that was circulated to the state governments,” it said.
Responding to the police statement, Annamalai said he would soon give a “point-by-point rebuttal”. “Our complaint was especially against the two top officers for failing their basic duties, and no wonder they gave a press release in the name of the TN Police force to protect themselves (sic),” Annamalai said in a series of tweets.
On October 23, a car blast occurred near the Kottai Eswaran temple in Ukkadam, Coimbatore. The person driving the car, Jamesha Mubin, was killed in the blast. He had been under the NIA radar for a while in 2019. Tamil Nadu police have arrested six persons in connection with the incident, and the UAPA has been invoked in the case. All six accused have been remanded to judicial custody.
The fifth Judicial Magistrate court in Coimbatore remanded Mohammed Thalha (25), Mohammed Azarudeen (23), Mohammed Riyaz (27), Firoz Ismail (27), Mohammed Navas Ismail (27) to judicial custody on October 28. They were produced before the court after three days of police custody. Afsar Khan (28), the seventh accused in the case, was remanded to judicial custody on October 27.