PESHAWAR: An anti-terrorism court (ATC) in Peshawar on Tuesday ordered a four-day physical remand of four suspected militants, including the alleged mastermind of the Qissa Khawani blasts, DawnNews reported.

According to government sources, police arrested the four suspects from the Sara Dargai area in Frontier Region Peshawar during a search operation on Monday evening,

Search operations were conducted yesterday evening in Mattani and FR Peshawar.

The four individuals were arrested from Sara Dargai following a gun-battle in Mattani area. Police claimed to have seized more than 800 kilograms of explosives from their possession.

The alleged militants were presented before the ATC on Tuesday to seek their physical remand. The ATC granted a four-day remand of the suspected militants.

Police sources said further investigation was being conducted after a case was registered against them under the Anti-Terrorism Act (ATA).

Law enforcement personnel shifted the arrested men to an undisclosed location.

Separately, police personnel on Tuesday arrested more than 91 suspects during raids in different parts of Peshawar as part of a search operation undertaken by the joint task force formed in order to clean the provincial capital of criminal elements.

Superintendent of Police Peshawar City Ismail Kharak told Dawn.com that targeted operations were conducted in the Ghari Atta Muhammad, Badbher Kalay, Achar and Javedabad areas, adding that 91 suspects were arrested in the operation.

“Three Kalashnikovs, 12 pistols, one G3 rifle, one 17 mm rifle, 12-bore guns, and hundreds of rounds of bullets have also been seized,” he said.

Peshawar, the capital of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, lies on the edge of Pakistan's tribal areas, labelled by Washington as the main sanctuary for Al Qaeda and Taliban militants in the country.

The city has seen frequent attacks by militants in the past few years, with targets ranging from civilians to policemen and other law enforcement personnel.

— Zahir Shah Sherazi contributed to this report