Mumbai gets on with life, initial probe yields clues

Union Home Secretary says "some leads" have been found in the probe. In pics | Share your experience | SurferSpeakEyewitness account | List of casualties

Life in Mumbai on Wednesday bounced back to normal a day after a series of blasts ripped through suburban trains, killing 190 people, as investigators said they had found "some leads" and did not rule out the Lashker-e-Taiba's involvement in the terrorist attacks.

HT Image

Train services resumed and schools and colleges were open. The railway stations that were the scene of Tuesday's attacks, which left over 600 people injured, were bustling with commuters.

As Mumbai and the rest of Maharashtra remained on red alert and tight security prevailed at airport and railway stations, offices and commercial establishments including banks and the stock market functioned as usual.

Unfazed by the death and destruction caused by the bombings, suburban trains were packed with commuters during the morning rush hour as thousands of people made their way to their workplaces.

Both Union Home Secretary VK Duggal and Maharashtra Police chief PS Pasricha said "some leads" had been found in the probe into the seven blasts in the trains. They did not give details.

"We have leads about the Mumbai blasts but no arrests have been made," Duggal said in Delhi. "We are confident of getting to the culprits very soon."

In Mumbai, Pasricha said, "Taking into account the modus operandi of the blasts, it is possible that the Lashker-e- Taiba could be involved in the terrorist act."

However, he said it would be "too premature" to say with certainty that the LeT was involved. "We are getting our own leads, while the Intelligence Bureau is giving us some information."

Duggal said 183 people were killed and 714 were injured. Of the dead, 123 bodies had been identified, he said. However, police officials in Mumbai put the death toll at 190.

Officials at the Sion, Cooper and KEM Hospitals said over 40 of the injured are in a serious condition.

Police officials said they suspected RDX explosive may have been used in the blasts. They said this possibility is being explored in the backdrop of the Anti Terrorist Squad's seizure of 43 kg of RDX from Aurangabad and other parts of the state in the past few months.

Officials of Gujarat's ATS also said they were working with their Maharashtra counterparts to trace the terrorists involved in the bombings. The Gujarat Police had last month questioned two suspected LeT terrorists arrested in Maharashtra in connection with a blast at the Ahmedabad railway station that injured 25 people.

The two terrorists had been arrested in Aurangabad with a cache of arms on May 19.

Pasricha said security had been tightened across the state. "Metal detectors and dog squads will be deployed at railway stations," he said. He praised the people of Mumbai for displaying "admirable resilience" and lending a hand to their fellow citizens in the aftermath of the bombings.

The Railways has given Rs 5 lakh as compensation to the kin of the dead while the Maharashtra government has given Rs 1 lakh. The expenditure on treating the injured will be borne by the government.

The city saw a spate of VIP visitors on Tuesday night, including Congress President Sonia Gandhi, Railway Minister Lalu Prasad and Home Minister Shivraj Patil. Leader of Opposition LK Advani visited Bhabha Hospital and sites where blasts occurred on Wednesday morning.