12 January,2009 08:42 AM IST | | MiD DAY Correspondent
BOMBED: The spot in the court where the blast took placeu00a0FILE PIC
The case takes a new turn; rowdy Nagaraj Jambagi confesses to having planted bombsu00a0
The arrest of a gang of eight members led by notorious rowdy Nagaraj Jambagi has given a new twist to the Hubli court blast case.
Jambagi confessed during the interrogation that he was responsible for carrying out blasts in the court and planting bombs at National Highway 4.
The gang, which was arrested by Bagalkot police special squad, was involved in over two dozen criminal cases.
On interrogation, Jambagi confessed that he, with the help of his associates, had planted bombs at the Hubli court to eliminate his rival gang and a few police officers.
Though the bomb exploded, there were no casualties or major damage. Jambagi then planned another attack at National Highway near Venkatapura village. He placed the bombs under the bridge but the bombs didn'tu00a0 explode due to rain. The hidden bombs found by the police were diffused.
The police have also seized some bullets and a live bomb from Jambagi, which resembles the explosives planted at the court premises. The police are also investigating whether Jambagi was associated with any organisation.
According to police, Jambagi and his gang were involved in seven cases including murder, extortion and dacoity.u00a0
In November 2007, Jambagi hatched a conspiracy to kill politicians Satish Jarkiholi and Ramesh Jarkiholi at Gokak.
Police recovered Rs 11, 08,250 cash, silver and gold valuables worth Rs 1.3 lakh and three mobiles from the gang.
Further investigations revealed that in March 2008, Jambagi purchased two country-made bombs from illegal arms dealers Hanumanth Arjun Sainasakali and Channabasappa Revannasiddappa of Indi Taluk.
Underworld plans
"Jambagi had made more than 5 lakh mobile calls from his cell phone. He was trying to build a gang of his own as he wanted to become an underworld don," the police said."
