The Hindu : Front Page : 60 killed, 200 injured as blasts rock Jaipur

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Wednesday, May 14, 2008
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60 killed, 200 injured as blasts rock Jaipur

Sunny Sebastian and PTI

Panic as eight explosions, all within Walled City, take place in crowded areas; nation-wide alert sounded

— PHOTO: AFP

tERROR AND SHOCK IN PINK CITY: This television grab from NDTV shows an injured person at one of the sites of bomb blasts in Jaipur on Tuesday.

JAIPUR: Eight serial blasts in a span of 12 minutes rocked the Pink City on Tuesday evening killing at least 60 persons and injuring over 200. The blasts occurred in crowded market areas and near a Hanuman temple in the Walled City.

“According to the information I have received 60 people have died and 150 have been injured,” said Chief Minister Vasundhara Raje, who rushed back to the State capital from Jodhpur.

Bangladesh-based Harkut-ul-Jehadi Islami(HuJI) is suspected to be behind the blasts that has taken the State authorities by surprise, Home Ministry sources said.

The sources ruled out the use of RDX in the carefully orchestrated low-intensity explosions which were suspected to have been set off from cycles in areas including near Hawa Mahal which are frequented by domestic and foreign tourists.

Minister for Parliamentary Affairs Rajendra Singh Rathore, who visited the City’s Sawai Man Singh Hospital, confirmed 41 deaths to The Hindu. Over 72 injured persons were admitted in the SMS while other hospitals both in the Walled City and outside too received a large number of injured persons. The police asked the people to remain indoors.

However, sources quoting SMS Hospital Superintendent Narpat Singh Shekhawat said the casualties could be anywhere between 45 and 60.

According to police sources, the blasts, all within the Walled City, took place between 7 pm to 7 .45 pm thus targeting the maximum number of victims.

After the blasts, panic spread in the whole city while the authorities sealed off the Walled City. No traffic was allowed to enter through its historic walls. The communication system also was jammed with mobiles not giving out signals.

The explosions that took place at Bari Chauper near the world famous Hawa Mahal, claimed at least three lives. One of the temples targeted was at Sanganeri Gate while the other is at Chandpole. The Chandpole blast was said to be of less intensity while the one, which went off on Maniharon ka Rasta near the victory tower, Sargasuli at Tripolia, was the strongest.

One of the bombs went off near a very popular eating-place, Laxmi Mishtan Bhandar, in the crowded Johari Bazar area. One bomb exploded near the Kothwali police station at the Choti Chauper.

From the initial reports arriving it seems that the terrorists used vehicles, including a car, cycle rickshaws and auto rickshaws to plant the bombs, which were detonated with the help of remote control devices.

RAF deployed

Rapid Action Force (RAF) personnel were immediately deployed to help deal with the situation as security was beefed up.

One of the blasts took place in a car and another near a handloom shop in the Kotwali area of the city, Home Department sources said.

The injured were rushed to the Sawai Man Singh hospital, the sources said.

At the blast sites crammed with peak-hour shoppers panic-stricken people ran helter skelter. There were also reports that a live bomb was defused by a bomb disposal squad.

Condemned

The President, Vice-President and the Prime Minister strongly condemned the blasts and appealed for calm.

Condemning the attack, President Pratibha Patil appealed for peace and calm.

Terming the blasts as “despicable and dastardly acts”, Vice-President Hamid Ansari expressed his deepest sympathies to the families of those killed and injured.

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, who was briefed on the blasts, deplored the attack on innocent people.

Dr. Singh assured all support to the Rajasthan government and assistance to the affected families, PM’s Media Adviser Sanjaya Baru said in a statement.

The Union Home Ministry sounded a nation-wide alert. “The Home Ministry is keeping a close watch on the situation in the Pink City,” a senior MHA official said.

Senior Home Ministry officials, including Home Secretary Madhukar Gupta, immediately got in touch with the State government and asked them to beef up security arrangements.

The MHA spokesman said Home Minister Shivraj Patil, who was on a two-day visit to the north-east, condemned the blasts. He was in touch with his Ministry officials.

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