The investigating agencies are investigating whether the explosion was caused by a VBIED (Vehicle-Borne Improvised Explosive Device) used by Dr. Umar Nabi, the alleged suicide bomber, sources in the probe agencies told The Statesman.
A i20 car exploded near the Red Fort, killing 13 people and injuring 24 others on 10 November evening. According to the sources, the car in which Dr. Umar Nabi travelled could have been a VBIED, as he drove throughout the entire National Capital Region (NCR) without the bomb being detected.
A source explained that a VBIED (a car) can bypass certain security layers that a person on foot cannot. It can drive across several borders and get much closer to a hardened target like the Red Fort.
“A VBIED immediately changes the entire context and scale of the threat. It’s not just a bomb; it’s a specific type of weapon system with devastating implications. A VBIED is essentially a mobile, large-scale bomb designed to deliver a massive payload as close as possible to a high-value target. The ‘vehicle’ aspect is a force multiplier,” the sources said.
According to them, such was the impact of the explosion that it could be heard at ITO, 3.7 kilometers away. They claimed that the blast was so powerful that it shook the earth up to a depth of 40 feet. A VBIED can carry hundreds or even thousands of pounds of explosives that can cause such an explosion.
“It can collapse reinforced buildings, flip vehicles, and cause catastrophic damage to infrastructure over a wide area, and the same happened in the Delhi blast. Perpetrators often pack the vehicle with additional shrapnel like gas cylinders to increase casualties,” said the source, adding that no detonator was found at the spot indicating that it was a VBIED.
The source noted that a major fire broke out immediately after the explosion outside the Red Fort which is typical of a VBIED attack.
“The ignition of fuel from the vehicle’s gas tank creates a massive fireball, causing severe burns and starting fires. A number of vehicles were damaged due to the fire. The blast from a VBIED causes severe injuries like traumatic amputations, and we found a severed hand at the blast site,” said the source.
VBIEDs are the weapon of choice for attacking critical infrastructure, government buildings, and religious places such as the Ram Mandir and the Red Fort.
An official from one of the probe agencies however said they have not yet reached any conclusion about the nature of the blast, especially since no detonator was recovered from the site. Therefore, they are working on the VBIED theory along with other possible angles.