The arrest of Yasin Bhatkal ends a longest manhunt. Bhatkal who hails from Bhatkal on the shores of the Arabian Sea in Uttara Kannada district of Karnataka has a strong bond with this sleepy town.
The Intelligence agencies found his foot mark in many of the communal violences in the State apart from other bombings across the country. Yasin who is known as ‘the ghost who bombs’ was one of the most wanted terrorists by the Indian agencies.
Bhatkal is wanted in various cases including the Best Bakery case and bomb blasts in New Delhi. His name had also cropped up in connection with the recent serial blasts in Bodh Gaya.
Bhatkal is credited with setting up the IM network across the country. Bhatkal who was in touch with the sleeper cells was targeting more attacks on the Indian cities.
For long, counter-terrorism units of 12 States — Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Delhi, Maharashtra, Rajasthan, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Kerala, Tamil Nadu and West Bengal — failed to capture this man.