Mumbai: 2003 Mulund train blast convict dies in custody

Saquib Nachan leaving jail in 2017 after his prison term for the 2003 blasts. File pic/Getty Images

SAQUIB Nachan, a former office-bearer of the banned Students Islamic Movement of India (SIMI) and an accused in the Pune ISIS module case, died at Delhi's Safdarjung hospital after he suffered a haemorrhagic stroke in Tihar jail.

A senior official at Tihar jail confirmed: "Saquib Nachan died at 11.30 am on June 28 during treatment at Safdarjung hospital."

Nachan was initially rushed to Deen Dayal Upadhyay hospital in Delhi on June 22. Later, on June 25, he was shifted to Safdarjung hospital for advanced medical treatment. His condition worsened on Saturday.

Nachan, 67, a resident of Padgha in Bhiwandi taluka, was in judicial custody at Tihar Jail since 2023, when the National Investigation Agency (NIA) arrested him from Padgha during a nationwide crackdown on ISIS. As per NIA, Nachan was the main accused and had assumed the right of administering the ‘Bayath' or oath of allegiance to the self-styled ‘Khalifa' of ISIS to persons joining the banned organisation.

He had been convicted in 2016 for his role in bomb blasts in 2002-03 in Mumbai, including the blasts at Mumbai Central, Vile Parle, and Mulund station.

His body will be handed over to his family after autopsy, and his last rites will be performed on Sunday at Borivli village near Padgha, said the official. Meanwhile, the police have stepped up security in the area.

(With inputs from agencies)