3 members of Hindu group grilled
A team comprising police officers and CBI officials interrogated at least three people on Monday allegedly linked to Hindu right wing groups, in connection with the 2007 Samjhauta Express blasts.
A team comprising police officers and CBI officials interrogated at least three people on Monday allegedly linked to Hindu right wing groups, in connection with the 2007 Samjhauta Express blasts.
At least 68 people were killed in the blasts on February 18, 2007 on the twice-a-week train connecting Delhi and the Pakistani city of Lahore.
The investigating team, believed to be keeping a vigil on the movement of five people linked to Hindu outfits, interrogated the three at Indore’s Palasia police station.
The team questioned Pranav Mandal, a cycle shop owner, and two others, Inspector General of Police, Indore Sanjay Rana told Hindustan Times.
Mandal is the president of local Hindu outfit Shivaji Vikas Mandal and is known to have close links with Ramchandra Kalsangra alias Ramji, main accused in the September 2008 Malegaon blast, who is yet to be traced.
Investigating agencies had earlier found that certain items such as suitcases, bottles and batteries used in the Samjhauta Express blasts were purchased from Indore.
The shopkeepers selling these goods were questioned, but the probe had hit a dead end.
While pursuing the new line of investigation, officials tied broken links through phone call records of Ramji and zeroed in on at least five people, including Mandal.
The probe team concentrated on individuals linked to Ramji and his group accused of the Malegaon blast.
Police sources said officers were trying to figure out whether Ramji and Sunil Joshi, an RSS functionary who was shot dead in the neighbouring town of Dewas on December 23 2007, were also behind the Samjhauta Express blasts.
Police teams have also been dispatched to Jamli in Khargone district in West Nimar and Shajapur district, around 80 km from here.
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