Abdul Karim Tunda. PHOTO: FILE
Abdul Karim Tunda, an alleged Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) terrorist arrested by the Indian police for plotting several terrorist attacks owes his expertise in explosives to a ‘chooran walah’.
His attraction towards incendiary material started in his childhood while he was in school and keenly observed a ‘chooran walah’ doing tricks such as cracker-type fire and explosion, using potash, sugar and acid, police said after questioning him for a day.
“When he was aged 12, Tunda observed a ‘chooran walah’ sprinkling acid on a mixture of potash and sugar to produce fire. He developed this principle to make bombs,” Joint Commissioner of Police (Special Cell) Madan Oberoi told a press conference.
Tunda, 70, used locally available materials like urea, nitric acid, potassium chloride, nitrobenzene and sugar to make bombs. His left hand was blown off while making a bomb in 1985 in Mumbai, after which he got the nickname ‘Tunda’ which means one-handed man.
The police said that after becoming a radicalised jihadi, Tunda started training youths. “He has been training young indoctrinated radicals to make bombs for the last 28 years,” said Oberoi. Investigators also said that Tunda also trained terror operatives in making improvised explosive devices (IEDs).
In Mumbai, the Delhi-born, class 7 dropout joined Jalees Ansari to form a new group Tanzeem Islah ul-Muslimeen (an armed organisation aiming to work for the Muslim community).
Investigators said that in 1993, Tunda and Ansari had carried out a series of bomb blasts in Mumbai. Ansari was arrested in January 1994 and after some time fled to the Bangladeshi capital of Dhaka where he started training jihadis in bomb-making.
“He has a good network in India, Nepal, Bangladesh and Pakistan. He has relations with terror organisations, including Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT), Jaish-e-Mohammed, Indian Mujahideen, Babbar Khalsa International and underworld Don Dawood Ibrahim,” said Oberoi.
Tunda was connected with BKI chief Wadhawa Singh, who used Tunda’s network in 2010 to smuggle a consignment of explosives into India. Tunda had an excellent network of operatives through which he sent men and material into India. He has also been sending explosives and fake Indian currency to India, Oberai said, adding that one of his destructive plans made at the behest of the BKI in 2010 was foiled.
Tunda also told the police investigators that he met Dawood Ibrahim in Karachi several times.
Published in The Express Tribune, August 20th, 2013.
COMMENTS (44)
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This tunda guy looks very phoney. I think he came to India to have free food in Indian jails inspired by treatment given to kasab.
Which chooran waala, to be precise? The one who chants "chooran ley lo chooran" during his address to his party workers?
He is one of the 20 most wanted list given to Pakistan by Indian authorities. One down, 19 remain. Inshallah we will get them.
@Joe: Repeatedly denying facts do not make it go away.It still remains a fact.
@Raza Khan: "Tunda’s role model a Choran Wala!" This is a very good comment and I like it.
Tunda's role model a Choran Wala!
Why did Shahryar Khan come with a statement two days before Tunda's arrest that Dawood Ibrahim was chased out of Pakistan? There is a lot to it.
Also Pakistanis claim Ajmal Kasab was not a Pakistani but yet they protested when he was hanged.
Pakistanis also claim 9/11 was an inside job but were so happy when Pakistan was made non-NATO ally in the war on terrorism which started as a response to 9/11.
Ram Gopal Verma's next movie. TUNDA CHOORAN WALA starring Shah Rukh Khan as Tunda Chooran Wala
Seriously amazed to hear such comments from my educated Pakistani countrymen. I live in London and I know what the world thinks of us. We should accept that we have failed to contain these rogue elements or we will never prosper. Blaming on others for the failure of our own system will not help use- at least the educated class (I am supposing who visit ET are) is expected to show more awareness of the problems within our society. Let India play its games but we need to clean our own mess.
@Truth_Prevails:
"This is basically a failure of the Indian educational system. The system dropped him out at grade 7 else he could have become someone whom Dr. Abul Kalam would have reported to."
While I agree that in most third-world countries including India, there is no emphasis on quality free education through high-school for poor children, there is the wise saying that you can take a horse to the water but can't force it to drink.
What I am saying is that people themselves have a big responsibility to improve their lot in society instead of blaming others.
ANother blockbuster story .star cast RAW
@Professor: how many muslims you know keep talking about deatb.please do not lie so balatantly...I have so mNy muslim friends and they are so full of life like any other community. well LTTE members talked about death only...would you label every tamil with a death wish?
It is amusing how everyone likes to live in denial. Now you will also deny OBL was found in your country. Another reason that politically, India will always find it difficult to be "friends" with you.
TUNTAand not Tunda.BTW, they do come up with interesting names - first "Kasab" and now "Tunda".
@ rabbani. pakistani news channel went to ajmal kasabs village in pakistan. so he was pakistani fr sure!
Why is it that most Muslims talk about death and dying. How about living an honest, harmonious life? You are born to live. You'll die when you die.
p r sharma
We don't see any reasons to be serious on this. RAW is expert in forging Pakistani passports. Take Ajmal Kasab for example.
jayant
And we Pakistanis have been waiting for a longtime for India to change. Yet, you people prefer to live in denial.
@Truth_Prevails: you are right in many ways, but also wrong in a few. they say, a teacher is like a shower of rain, falling equally, every where, it is up to the pupil to catch that rain and soak it up.
Bad Bad journalism. Why copying something from indian newspaper and printing here even without changing a single line such as "LET terrorist". Has it been proven yet!
Pakistani or Indian matters not ................. the man was rotten to the core and deserves the harshest of punishments. Hopefully the Indian judicial system will not fail in doing its duty.
@lolz: you are so much obsessed towards bollywood, even we indian's are not that much i believe. we take it as an movie, but you guys are thinking of the bollywood movies through out your life time good carry on.
@Serioulsy?: When arrested , Abdul Karim Tunda was holding a Pakistani Passport( though not a Pakistani citizen). ? A reason to be serious.
I bet if he was a pakistani agent,he would never have accepted his connections with pakistan.Pakistani agents are not so soft skinned.Tis another drama serial directed by Indian agencies.
Baloney .. they have the audacity to sell lies because they have a population ready to buy sensational news even if it costs an arm
Before expanding this story what you read is "he (Tunda) met Dawood Ibrahim in Karachi several times" whereas after reading the whole news you come to find this as a passing comment and not something i.e. connection with Dawood Ibrahim around which news revolves. Either this is poor journalism or biased reporting.
@Np: Think of a bollywood movie, how many of people get involved or want to get involved in any stunt... who would not want to be a headline on the media?! When it comes to Indians, who literally worship Bollywood stars and pictures, what do you expect mate? All the countries might plot such stunts like 9/11 etc, but come on, they create it closer to reality, but when it comes to Indians, the names,characters, places, sequences, then songs, everything is drafted and created by a Bollywood director. Watch a hollywood movie "ARGO", you will get some idea ;-)
Please Stop Selling Chooran... :)
@Np: I don't think 9/11 was an inside job, but I do doubt bin Ladens raid in Abbottabad, I guess they call people like me 'free-thinkers', I don't believe everything the mainstream media tells me, and I certainly don't trust the American government.
So much masala.... I thought I was reading a Bollywood script!!
@Lolz: His family says he is glad he is caught and so do his neighbors. Google that and you will find it . Is his family also part of the stunt? Of course for people who believe 9/11 was an inside job and OBL was never present in Abbotabad will disregard all evidence.
1 teenager - Ajmal Kassab vs entire India Navy 1 Pakistani Tunda Vs Entire Indian Army and Intelligence Whats next? India Attacked by Pakistani blind and deaf - Bollywood nation, please come up with something better next time.
Most in Pakistan will deny his pakistani connection has propoganda. Everything in Pak is either Indian or American conspiracy. Acceptance is the first step to chAnge
@Truth_Prevails: This is basically a failure of the Indian educational system. The system dropped him out at grade 7 else he could have become someone whom Dr. Abul Kalam would have reported to. Yes, everyone who drops out in grade 7 becomes a terrorist in India.
hahahaha... yet another Bollywood stunt. Grow up guys, real life is not a picture and the whole world is not Mumbai, worshipping your movies.
give all details of how to make such bombs so that all other terrorist minded people can start preparing bombs by reading media. Shame on Information leaking Investigators.
Tunda.....lol. That is his name?
Timings are important of his 'so called' arrest. Will we (Pakistanis) gonna buy this story ? Lolz. As far as Pakistani media is concerned, they better stop giving any coverage to Indian propaganda.
This is basically a failure of the Indian educational system. The system dropped him out at grade 7 else he could have become someone whom Dr. Abul Kalam would have reported to.