Thiruvananthapuram: Sri Lankan army chief Mahesh Senanayake had earlier confirmed that the suicide bombers who carried out the Easter day blasts which resulted in the death of more than 250 people had visited Kerala. Meanwhile, the state police chief DGP Loknath Behera said that it was the NIA which should react to the Lankan army chief's revelations.
“It is the NIA which investigates cases that have international connections. The Kerala Police cannot reveal much information about such cases. That is not the right procedure. The possibility of people from other countries visiting Kerala cannot be ignored as it is a popular tourist destination,” DGP said.
The top Sri Lankan military official made the revelation in an exclusive interview with the BBC. He revealed that the terrorists had travelled to Kerala after visiting Kashmir and Bengaluru. Meanwhile, the officials of the intelligence agency said that they have been exchanging significant intelligence information about those who are related to the terror outfit which carried out the Sri Lankan blasts, since 2014. The report of the same has been handed over to the central agencies including the NIA. They informed that the reports, as per the usual procedures, were exchanged even months before the blasts.
Senanayake had claimed the terrorists were probably imparting training to like-minded individuals in Kerala and Kashmir, both at the southern and northern extremities of India.
The NIA has obtained evidence that Riyaz Aboobacker, who was arrested from Kerala's Palakkad, was interested in the speeches of Zahran Hashim, the main conspirator of the Sri Lankan blasts and the leader of the National Thowheed Jamath. Riyaz had also shared these speeches on social media and NIA reportedly has evidence on this.
The NIA officials have also found that the persons in its custody had links with the IS recruitment that took place in Kerala's Kasaragod.