Many possible attacks in the country may have been averted with the arrest of Indian Mujahideen's (IM) key associate Abdul Sattar yesterday.

The police claimed that Sattar, who was wanted in more than 20 cases, including the Mumbai train blasts in 2006, was planning more blasts across the country. It is believed that Lashkar-e-Toiba operatives in Pakistan had trained him.

Sattar was nabbed in Hyderabad after two other associates Fayaz Ali and Akbar Ali, who were arrested in Kapu, a village near Mangalore, by the Criminal Operation Department of Karnataka police on Monday, gave away his whereabouts. The Mumbai police now await details from their Hyderabad counterparts.

Interrogation

Fayyaz and Akbar are considered to be close to the mastermind Riyaz Bhatkal's brother Rafiq, a key IM member. They will be escorted to Mumbai along with Sattar for investigations. They confessed that their role in the blasts involved making bombs. Theyu00a0 were plotting more blasts.