New Delhi, Sep 18: The NIA on Thursday arrested two accused in the 2023 Villianur bomb blast case after extensive searches in four locations in Puducherry, including the Central Prison of the Union Territory.

The accused, identified as Heram alias Karthi alias TR and Udhayakumar alias Kumar, have been arrested for leaking sensitive information, including the names and other details about protected witnesses, in the case in which a political functionary, Senthil Kumaran, was brutally killed, said an NIA statement.

The NIA on Thursday conducted coordinated searches at Central Prison Kalapet and Yanam Prison, along with two other locations. The NIA teams seized mobile phones, SIM Cards and other incriminating documents, including materials revealing the identities of the protected witnesses.

The probe agency said on the fateful evening, at around 9.30 p.m., six bike-borne assailants had hurled a country-made bomb to stun the victim before hacking him to death using machetes and knives in Villianur.

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The NIA investigations revealed that the two accused arrested on Thursday had collude with others, including the prime accused Nithyanandam alias Nithi, to obtain and disseminate the names, identities and mobile numbers of the protected witness.

Nithi, along with 12 others, was chargesheeted by NIA in the case on September 21, 2023. While Nithi is currently lodged in Yanam Prison, the other accused are being held in Central Prison, Kalapet, Puducherry.

Intelligence inputs received during the course of the investigation recently indicated that Nithi and his associates had illicitly obtained the names and identities of the protected witnesses in the bomb blast and murder case.

The information was allegedly used to threaten and coerce witnesses in an attempt to derail the legal process and obstruct justice.

The NIA is continuing with its investigation to uncover the larger criminal conspiracy behind the killing, and to identify others who violated Section 17 of the NIA Act read with Section 44 of the UA(P) Act, 1967 to reveal the identity of the protected witnesses and jeopardise their safety.

(IANS/NS)

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