Indian Mujahideen operative Tehseen Akhtar, who is allegedly the mastermind of Sunday's Patna serial blasts that left six dead and over 50 injured, is the nephew of a Janata Dal (United) leader from Bihar, reports claimed on Tuesday.
Taki Akhtar is the JD(U) leader in Samastipur district, Bihar.
According to a report published in a daily, Taki has always denied any ties with Tehseen. The Akhtars are residents of Maniarpur village of Samastipur, about 100 km from Patna.
Seven blasts took place on Sunday, six of which occured in and around the Gandhi Maidan where Bharatiya Janata Party's prime ministerial candidate Narendra Modi later addressed a rally. Tahseen Akhtar is considered to be close to Yasin Bhatkal, the man who co-founded Indian Mujahideen. In the last few months, the National Investigation Agency (NIA) on more than 10 occasions raided his native village but failed to find him.
Earlier, the NIA issued an arrest warrant against Tahseen Akhtar, and also announced a reward of Rs 10 lakh for information that could lead to his arrest.
