A scene outside Al-Falah university in Dhouj, Haryana on November 12, 2025.
| Photo Credit: Shashi Shekhar Kashyap
An eerie silence lay over Al-Falah University on Wednesday (November 12, 2025), as the Faridabad police conducted several raids on campus and door-to-door searches in the nearby villages of Dhouj and Fatehpur Taga, seeking explosive materials and suspects connected to the Delhi car blast that killed at least 12 people on Monday (November 10, 2025).
An alleged occupant of the car, Umar Nabi, who was killed in the blast, was a junior doctor at the University, while two other doctors who have been arrested were also working there. The University has issued a statement distancing itself from those accused of being part of the ‘Faridabad terror module’.
“We have also learnt that two of our doctors have been detained by the investigating agencies. We wish to make it clear that the university has no connection with the said persons apart from them being working in their official capacities with the university,” Vice-Chancellor Bhupinder Kaur Anand said in the statement.
She also expressed concern over allegations made by “online platforms” about the university laboratories being used for storing chemicals or materials. “The university laboratories are used solely and exclusively for the academic and training requirements of MBBS students and other authorised courses,” the statement said.
Fear on campus
Students and staff stayed behind the University’s gates, two days after the blast. The samosa and tea stalls once buzzing with the chatter of students stood deserted as heavy security stood between the campus premises and passersby.
Speaking to The Hindu, a second year student from the Pharmaceutical department said that she and her classmates are now afraid of telling people where they study. “People have started associating all the students and staffers with the conspiracy, and that has made us afraid about our safety,” she said over the phone, requesting anonymity.
Imam’s detention
Just outside campus, within the premises of the Al-Falah mosque, fear loomed in the single-room quarters occupied by the mosque’s Imam Md. Ishtiyaq, who was detained on Tuesday. He left behind four minor children and an ailing wife. “Every time a car comes, I get reminded of the day the police came to pick up my father,” said the Imam’s eldest daughter. “Abbu had sat down to have lunch and had promised my brother that he would take him to the eye specialist after lunch, but just when he had the first bite of the roti, the police came and took him away,” the 16-year-old told The Hindu.
Since his detention, the police have come multiple times, first to seize all documents and devices and later to question his neighbours. The Imam was taken to Jammu and Kashmir for interrogation on Wednesday (November 12, 2025).
Door-to-door search
A similar heaviness marred the faces of the villagers of Fatehpur Taga, where Dr. Muzamil Ganaie had allegedly been storing explosives and ammunition in a rented house owned by the Imam. At around 7 p.m. on Tuesday (November 11, 2025), the Faridabad police had gone door to door to search every corner of the houses in the village in search of more explosives. The police confirmed that they were looking for ammunition and possible suspects hiding amongst locals as well.
Village resident Salim, 67, said that the police did not find anything, but the exercise has left a deep dent in the spirit of the village. “Nobody ever saw Dr. Muzamil came here to stay, we only knew that a man with impaired mobility and his wife stayed in that house as tenants,” he said.
Published – November 12, 2025 10:54 pm IST
