Sources in Delhi Police said Atif Ameen, alleged to be the prime conspirator in the September 13 blasts, had asked Hakim to buy ball bearings specially from Azamgarh — Hakim comes from the district in UP — so that investigators could not link the Delhi blasts with those in Jaipur.

Hakim, a fourth-year student of Biotechnology at Integral University in Lucknow, is being interrogated by Delhi Police’s Special Cell officers at present. A source said he has disclosed that he stayed in L-18, Batla House, Jamia Nagar — allegedly the epicenter of the blasts plot, where a Special Cell encounter killed two suspects and left Inspector M C Sharma dead on September 19. Hakim has reportedly told police that he left Delhi following the blasts for Azamgarh.

Lucknow ATS today said he was absconding even from his Azamgarh residence, as also his university in Lucknow since September 22, three days after the Batla House encounter.

“Hakim came to Lucknow on November 29 to take his examination; he was sharing a hostel room with a classmate since then,” SSP (ATS) Rajiv Sabbarwal said in Lucknow. “No hostel room was allotted in his name.”

Hakim was among the 13 alleged Indian Mujahidin men, suspected to be involved in the blasts, on whom Delhi Police had announced a reward of Rs 1 lakh each on December 30.

According to a source, Hakim had reportedly bought some 20,000 ball bearings from a shop in Delhi’s Chandni Chowk, which were used in the Jaipur blasts. The source said Atif wanted Hakim to source the ball bearings from Azamgarh to throw investigators off track. Hakim also arranged funds for Atif Ameen and his operations, the source said. He would be produced in a city court on Monday for further custody.

Interestingly, a team of Mumbai ATS had also arrived in Lucknow today seeking Hakim’s remand but they did not proceed with the application before the court. The Mumbai ATS would now apply before the Delhi court, it was informed.

After Amir Talha, Hakim is the second major arrest of the serial blasts suspects. The Mumbai ATS had arrested Talha, another Azamgarh youth from Nagpur station on December 21 while he was on way to Hyderabad. Talha was one of the IM suspects who allegedly fled Batla House during the encounter. He had mentioned Hakim’s name during interrogation and later Mumbai Police said they had retrieved e-mails exchanged between the two.