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Bangalore attack masterminded from Bangladesh
There are definite indications of the involvement of terrorist outfits with roots in Bangladesh in the attack on the Indian Institute of Science (IISc) at Bangalore on Wednesday night.Mohammad Ibrahim, the Bangladeshi arrested by the Special Cell of Delhi Police in connection with the blast in Hyderabad, had disclosed during interrogations that IT centres like Bangalore were on the hitlist of leading terror outfit Lashkar-e-Tayyeba. "The modus operandi of the terrorists who barged into the premises of IISc, outside the JN Tata Auditorium, more than suggests that it could have even been a fidayeen attack. The terrorists escaped since there was no retaliation from any quarter. These are tell-tale signs of Lashkar's involvement," said a senior Delhi Police official. Initial investigations have hinted at the involvement of a four-member gang, which had executed the plan of attack, leaving a retired professor of IIT, Delhi, dead and four others wounded. Professor MC Puri's body was flown to the Capital on Thursday evening from Bangalore. Though no terrorist outfit has claimed responsibility for the attack, the disclosure of Ibrahim clears the involvement of Lashkar indirectly with one of the Bangladeshi outfits. Police officials here are of the opinion that Lashkar's offshoot Harkat-ul-Jihad was behind the killings as Ibrahim during his interrogations had specifically pointed out that Bangalore was the target for the next attack. The blast at Hyderabad took place on October 12 last. "The attacks on two major metros are clear indication of Lashkar's growing tentacles in South India," said the officer and added: "These militants are trained by Inter-Services Intelligence of Pakistan and then sheltered in Bangladesh. Lashkar has been using Bangladeshi groups for striking in India and the alert given by intelligence agencies recently mentioned Bangalore and Hyderabad as the prime targets especially in context of the presence of American interests in the two city." "Both Hyderabad and Bangalore have more than 2,000 IT industries and they have been targeted because of increasing international trade of India, which Pakistan wants to neutralise," the officer added. Additionally Hyderabad is hosting the annual convention of Indian Science Congress in January. NRIs are also meeting here in January for their annual Pravasi Bharat jamboree. After the neutralisation of a sleeper cell of LeT in Delhi in March, the Delhi Police had repeatedly been sounding wake-up calls about plans of jihadi terrorists to target IT companies in Bangalore. Hoax calls to blow up IT companies in Bangalore since March have created an atmosphere of terror there. The recent hoax message of an attempt by al Qaeda to blow up Parliament had also originated from Thirunelveli in Tamil Nadu. It is a hotbed of the activities of the Al Ummah, which had organised a number of serial blasts in Coimbatore in February 1998. Following Wednesday's attack security has been beefed up in all the embassies, IT industries, government establishments, institutions, army establishments, public places and hotels in the capital and in all the metros. The security officials are checking the railway stations in Delhi and all the vehicles entering the city from any of the route are going through tight vigil. Posted by: Dan Darling 2005-12-30 |
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