A newly surfaced CCTV video has given investigators a clearer picture of the movements of the Hyundai i20 used in the Red Fort blast, which killed 10 people and injured several others. The footage, recorded on October 29, shows the same white i20 with a Haryana number plate at a pollution-check booth — just hours after it was purchased.
In the video, three men are seen stepping out of the car. One, wearing a shirt, is observed speaking to booth officials, while the other two — one in a grey t-shirt and another in a white t-shirt with a backpack — walk around the vehicle. Investigators have confirmed that this is the same car later used in the November 10 explosion near Delhi’s Red Fort, and are working to establish the identities of all three individuals.
According to officials, the car was sold on October 29 to Dr Umar Mohammad, who has since been identified as the suspected suicide bomber. The new footage places the car in Delhi’s outskirts less than two weeks before the blast, providing crucial leads about the network involved.
A composite timeline, built from CCTV footage and toll-booth data, has enabled Delhi Police’s Special Cell to track the i20’s movements throughout the day of the attack. The vehicle reportedly entered Delhi at 8:04 a.m. via the Badarpur toll booth from Faridabad and stopped at a petrol station near Okhla Industrial Area around 8:20 a.m.. Cameras later captured it moving through central and old Delhi areas, including Darya Ganj, Kashmere Gate, and near Sunehri Masjid.
By 3:19 p.m., the car entered the parking area near the Red Fort, where it remained stationary until 6:22 p.m., suggesting possible reconnaissance or preparation. Minutes later, CCTV footage showed the i20 leaving the area, passing through Chandni Chowk, making a U-turn near the Red Fort, and finally stopping on Subhash Marg near Gate No. 1 of the Red Fort Metro Station. The blast occurred just before 7:00 p.m., setting off fires and chaos across one of Delhi’s most crowded stretches.
A separate CCTV clip from moments before the explosion shows the i20 weaving through dense evening traffic. The driver, wearing a black face mask, appears calm and focused. Another camera angle reportedly captured a clearer view of the driver, and investigators believe the individual’s build and features resemble Dr Umar Mohammad, the Faridabad-based fugitive linked to a Jaish-e-Mohammed and Ansar Ghazwat-ul-Hind terror module busted last week.
Officials suspect the car’s three-hour halt near Sunehri Masjid may have been part of a reconnaissance mission to survey the area before carrying out the attack. The Special Cell and central intelligence agencies are now mapping the vehicle’s entire route — analysing every stop, camera feed, and toll crossing — to determine whether Dr Umar acted alone or had accomplices stationed along the route.
The findings are expected to form the backbone of the ongoing terror investigation, which also links the Delhi blast to the massive Faridabad explosives seizure of 2,900 kg of IED-making material recovered days earlier.
