Madni’s aide who exposed his terror links Missing, Cops may quiz Madni

Mani missing; cops may quiz Madani

PNS | Kannur

The Kerala Police is likely to question Islamist leader and PDP chairman Abdul Nasser Madani on the complaint that his one-time aide Mani alias Yusuf was missing since March last. Investigating officer Joshi Jose, Sub-Inspector of Mattanur police station, Kannur, will leave for Kochi to question Madani once he gets the permission for interrogation.

Mani, originally from Tuticorin, Tamil Nadu, had given statements to the police which had in effect gone against Madani, during the investigations into the terror network in Kerala. He had settled in Ayippuzha, Mattanur years ago after marrying Hazeena of Meradan House. She filed a complaint with the police that Mani was missing since March last.

Mani’s alleged disappearance had occurred after he was once presented by Madani before the media in Thiruvananthapuram amidst allegations that the Islamist leader had connections with dreaded terror operatives like Abdul Sattar alias Sainuddeen aka Sattar Bhai, said to be explosive expert who had manufactured the bombs for terror acts in Bangalore and elsewhere.

The Tamilian had become a fan of Madani after they met at the prison in Coimbatore where the latter had been lodged in connection with the case regarding the serial blasts in the Tamil Nadu city. During questioning, Mani, a witness in the terror-related cases, told the police that Fazeela Begum, daughter of Sainuddeen, was staying with Sufiya, Madani’s wife, in Kochi. This was when Mani was working in the Purdah showroom run by Sufiya.

Madani had denied this, and to establish his argument, he had presented Mani in front of the media during a Press conference in Thiruvananthapuram in the context of the Lok Sabha elections. The PDP leader claimed that the reports appearing in the Press about Mani’s statement were unfounded and that the alleged statement he had given could have been fabricated. However, the statement of Mani had been prominently quoted in the chargesheet the police had filed in the Additional Chief Judicial Magistrate Court, Thalassery.

In the complaint to the police, Hazeena said that Mani had left her house for painting work on March 25 and had not returned. She said she had been late to file the complaint as she though her husband could have been at Madani’s place.

Sainuddeen, who had reportedly manufactured the Indian Mujahiddeen bombs that went off in various cities last year, had himself told the Anti-Terror Squad of the Kerala Police that was in close contact with Madani for the past 15 years. The police had found out from Mani and other sources that Sainuddeen’s daughter had been attending school from Sufiya’s residence in Kochi, but Madani categorically denied any knowledge of any person called Sainuddeen.

The principal of the school in Kochi which Fazeela had attended had told the police that the local guardian of the girl, according to school records, was Sufiya. Madani, however, claimed that the girl, Fazeela Begum, attending school from his house, was actually the daughter of a servant.

Sainuddeen, a native of Kondotty, Malappuram, had been doing a business of selling electric fans brought from Hyderabad and this was how he had connections with that city, which later became his base. He had come into contact with Madani through the workers of PDP.

According to reports, he had visited Madani’s house as he was asked to install an elevator because Madani wanted it to go upstairs. Sainuddeen was arrested from Hyderabd jointly by the Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh police forces in January last in connection with the bombings in Bangalore and elsewhere.

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