Red Fort blast: Car’s 11-hour trail shows suspicious movement before deadly explosion

The Delhi Police has traced the 11-hour route taken by the Hyundai i20 car that was used in a blast that has claimed at least 12 lives here — revealing the vehicle’s movement from Haryana’s Faridabad to the national capital — sources said on Tuesday.

According to the sources, CCTV footage and data obtained from a toll plaza have helped the investigators piece together a detailed timeline of the vehicle’s movement.

The car began its journey from Faridabad early Monday morning and meandered through several parts of Delhi, before it detonated near the Red Fort metro station around 6:52 PM on Monday, the sources said.

“The car was first spotted outside the Asian Hospital in Faridabad at approximately 7:30 am. Around 8:13 AM, it crossed the Badarpur toll plaza — marking its entry into Delhi,” a source said.

At 8:20 AM, CCTV footage captured the image of the vehicle passing by a petrol pump near the Okhla Industrial Area.

The investigators said at 3:19 PM, the car entered a parking area adjacent to the Red Fort complex, where it reportedly remained stationary for nearly three hours.

“At 6:22 PM, the car was seen leaving the parking area and heading towards the Red Fort. This 30-minute period before the blast is now a key focus of our investigation. We are trying to establish who was inside the vehicle,” the source said.

Barely 24 minutes after the vehicle left the parking area, at around 6:52 PM, a powerful explosion tore through the moving car. The blast ripped apart the vehicle, scattered body parts across the road, shattered windows of nearby buildings, the metro station and triggered panic among locals and tourists.

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Police said they are analysing CCTV footage collected from across Delhi and adjoining National Capital Region (NCR) areas to track every movement of the car and identify anyone who may have been in contact with it during the day.

Another police source said the same car was also seen outside a petrol pump, where it went to procure a pollution certificate.

“Our investigation is ongoing. We got to know that the car procured a pollution certificate from a petrol-filling station to ensure that if police stop it near the border, it can show all documents. Many details are emerging and we are connecting all the dots,” the source said.