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Show me the money: Bhatkal

Contrary to the popular perception that Indian Mujahideen mastermind Riyaz Bhatkal provided finances to groom terrorists, police sources disclosed that he, in fact, borrowed money from them. During his eight-month stint in Pune, Bhatkal borrowed Rs 4,000 from techie Mansoor Asghar Peerbhoy and an undisclosed amount from Mohammad Choudhary and other recruits.

The terror suspects told police during interrogation that Bhatkal ran out of funds during his stint in Pune. In fact, he had no money to support even his basic needs. However, Bhatkal did not want to move out of Pune because he felt he would lose his grip on the recruits if he lost contact with them. He remained with them until they agreed to become a part of the plot to carry out blasts across the country. He was put up in rooms provided by Peerbhoy, Choudhary and Mohammad Atique Mohammed alias Musab.

Peerbhoy was so influenced by Bhatkal that he also ensured his daily needs were taken care of. The police have traced Bhatkal's source of funds to Mangalore.

Targeting builders

Crime Branch officials have also stumbled upon Bhatkal's other plans to target businessmen and builders in Pune.
"The idea was to extort money from them to execute bomb blasts across the country," said Joint Commissioner of Police (Crime) Rakesh Maria.