RAWALPINDI, July 22: An anti terrorism court (ATC) here on Tuesday announced six-day extension in the physical remand of a man suspected of involvement in a suicide attack in R.A. Bazaar police area last year, while the remand of 18 other alleged terrorists was separately extended till August 7.

ATC No. 2 Judge Sakhi Mohammad Kahot awarded six days more physical custody of the accused, Umer Adil, after the SHO R.A. Bazaar sought further remand to interrogate the accused.

According to the police, Adil, a resident of Islamabad, was arrested from Baraf Khana in Tench Bhatta area on July 2 and two grenades were seized from his possession.

A case was registered against him under sections 4 and 5 of the Explosive Act, 120-B (criminal conspiracy) of Pakistan Penal Code (PPC) and Section 7 of Anti-Terrorism Act.

More importantly, the police suspected Adil’s involvement in a suicide attack near the General Headquarters (GHQ) on September 4, 2007, in which two shopkeepers were killed and several people were injured.

Police had carried out his identification parade in Adiala Jail and were interrogating the accused after some positive developments.

The judge also extended the judicial custody of six men — Shafiqur Rehman (from Mardan), Mohammad Mazharul Haq (Islamabad), Niaz Ahmed (Rawalpindi); Syed Abdul Majid, Syed Abdul Saboor and Syed Abdul Basit from Lahore till August 7.

The New Town police arrested the suspected terrorists on July 1 on a tip-off from the area behind the Rawalpindi Arts Council and seized three suicide vests from their custody. The accused were identified as Niaz, Mazhar and Shafiq.

Police alleged they were planning to carry out attacks on important personalities in the country.

The six men are also suspected of their alleged role in the suicide attack on November 24 last year when a suspected bomber rammed his explosive-laden van into a bus packed with security personnel at the gates of a compound housing the offices of an intelligence agency near Faizabad.

Meanwhile, the court deferred the hearing in an other terrorism case involving 12 accused men till August 7.

The accused — Intikhab Abbasi, Abid Khan, Mohammad Ishaq, Mohammad Kabir, Qamaruz Zaman, Zafar Ali, Mohammad Zameer, Mohammad Tauqir, Mohammad Sajjad, Abdul Sattar, Farhan Mehmood and Rashid Mehmood — were arrested by security agencies on June 1 from Sadiqabad, a densely populated area of Rawalpindi.