The Editorial Page: Red Fort blast reminds us that war against terror will never end 12 WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 12, 2025 Journalism of Courage NEW DELHI, LATE CITY, 24 PAGES ₹7.00 (₹8 RAIPUR, ₹15 SRINAGAR) l www.indianexpress.com DA I LY F R O M : A H M E DA B A D , C H A N D I GA R H , D E L H I , J A I P U R , KO L K ATA , L U C K N O W , M U M B A I , N AG P U R , PAT N A , P U N E , VA D O DA R A Happening today lGOVERNMENT will release retail inflation data for October. Several economists see inflation dropping below 0.5%, which would be a record low. lPM NARENDRA MODI, who is in Bhutan, will participate in the Global Peace Prayer Festival. lEAM S JAISHANKAR will visit Canada to participate in the G7 Foreign Ministers’ Meeting with Outreach Partners. lSUPREME COURT will hear pleas in connection with air pollution in Delhi-NCR. Board’s message for Virat, Rohit : Domestic first, then India Devendra Pandey Mumbai, November 11 IF TWO of Indian cricket’s brightest stars have to stay in the team, they will have to maketheirwaythroughthedomestic grind. Thisisthemessagefromthe Indian board for Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma. Both have retired from Tests and T20 Internationals but continue to represent the country in One-Day Internationals. The first step in this direction could possibly be a Vijay Hazare Trophy game starting on December 24. This is the only one-day game in the domestic calendar between the three-ODI series against South Africa from December 3-9 and »CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 DAY AfTER EXPLOSION NEAR RED fORT, INVESTIGATORS fOCUS ON USE Of AMMONIUM NITRATE Car blast probe tracks doctors, Faridabad-Pulwama terror link PULWAMATOFARIDABADTOREDFORT:THE‘MODULE’ Bigger attack may have been averted, say officials; many held as Pulwama centre of probe Al Falah, Faridabad Bashaarat Masood & Varinder Bhatia R/O Koil village, Pulwama, J&K Pulwama, Chandigarh, November 11 THE PROBE into the Red Fort blast so far suggests it was the handiwork of the same “transnational and interstate” terror module that was busted by the Jammu and Kashmir Police days earlier, with roots in the Valley’s Pulwama district, it is learnt. According to highly placed sources in the police forces of three states, the man who was driving the Hyundai i20 that exploded is suspected to be Dr Umar Nabi (36), a resident of Pulwama and an employee of Faridabad’s Al-Falah School of Medical Sciences & Research Centre. Investigators say two other members of this module — Dr Muzammil Ahmad Ganai (32), who hails from Pulwama and was also working at Al Falah, and Dr Adeel Majeed Rather (33) from Qazigund, who was working at a private hospital in Saharanpur — were arrested daysbeforetheblast.Policehad alsoseized358kgofexplosives, »CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 l Dr UMAR NABI Suspected i20 driver WORKED AT Dr ADEEL MAJEED RATHER Dr SHAHEEN SHAHID WORKED AT Dr Ganai was suspected to have used her car, from which a rifle was seized WORKED AT Al Falah, Faridabad R/O Lucknow Famous Hospital, Saharanpur R/O Qazigund, J&K Pulwama Dr MUzAMMIL AHMAD GANAI WORKED AT Al Falah, Faridabad R/O Koil village, Pulwama, J&K AAMIR RASHID Saharanpur Red Fort Faridabad A plumber; the i20 car was bought with his documents R/O Samboora, Pulwama, J&K (His brother also detained) Lucknow Man at the wheel: Umar Nabi, doctor who ‘motivated white-collar group’ Bashaarat Masood & Ankita Upadhyay Pulwama, New Delhi, November 11 ON NOVEMBER 7, three days before an i20 car exploded near the Red Fort, Dr Umar Nabi Bhat,themansaidtobedriving the vehicle, called his sister-inlaw in Pulwama to say that he would return home in three days. On Monday night, as the INSIDE P4, 5, 6, 8, 10 CLoTHES AND TATTooS gUIDE kIN AS THEy IDENTIfy DEAD THE i20 roUTE: WAS IN DELHI for NEArLy 11 HoUrS family in Koil village of PulwamawaitedforUmar’sreturn, policeshowedupandaskedfor his brother Zahoor Illahi. They took him away, only to return sometime later to take away his elder brother Ashiq Hussain. The Bhats said they were not givenanyreason.Umar’sfather Ghulam Nabi Bhat was picked up for questioning while his mother was taken away, reportedly for DNA sampling. »CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 Conspiracy... allresponsible willbebrought tojustice:PM Express News Service New Delhi, November 11 DECLARING THAT investigativeagencieswillunearththe “conspiracy” behind the blast near Delhi’s Red Fort, which has claimed nine lives so far, PrimeMinisterNarendraModi saidTuesdaythattheperpetrators “will not be spared” and “all those responsible will be brought to justice”. The Prime Minister’s remarks were echoed by Home Minister Amit Shah and Defence Minister Rajnath Singh who said those behind Monday’sincidentwill“facethefull wrath”ofagenciesthatareconducting a “swift and thorough” investigation. Modi’s reference to a “conspiracy” was the first public indication by the country’s top leadership of a terror plot linked to the blast. The Prime Minister was speaking in Bhutan’s capital Thimphu,whereheisonatwoday visit during which he will join the 70th birthday celebrations of the nation’s former KingJigmeSingyeWangchuck. “India and Bhutan have shared a deep spiritual and »CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 Bihar second phase sees record turnout of 68.76%; exit polls predict NDA return Himanshu Harsh & Asad Rehman Business as Usual By EP UNNY Patna, New Delhi, November 11 BIHAR RECORDED its highest ever voter turnout of 68.76% in the second and final phase of polling for the Assembly elections Tuesday, even as the exit polls unanimously predicted a comfortable victory for the incumbent NDA. The turnout figure surpassed all previous polling records in Bihar since 1951, »CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 Will bring down tariffs on India, ‘pretty close’ to trade deal: Trump RAVI DUTTA MISHRA New Delhi, November 11 USPRESIDENTDonaldTrump Tuesday said the US will bring down tariffs on India, and that Washington is “pretty close” to reachinga“fairtradedeal”with New Delhi. India currently faces 50 per cent tariffs, the highest on any country globally,primarilyduetothe‘penalty’ duty of 25 per cent for purchasing Russian oil. “Right now, the tariffs are »CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 E. ExPLAINED The final lap India and US have started working on the text for the draft trade agreement. Delhi believes there is no need for another round of talks. Since almost 25% of the tariffs on India is due to Russian oil, Delhi hopes final tariffs will not be more than 15-20%.