Bodh Gaya:
A day after multiple blasts in the Mahabodhi temple in Bodh Gaya, the Bihar Police released the CCTV footage of the one of the blasts. They have also detained a man named Vinod Mistry, whose identity card was found at the blast site. Chief Minister Nitish Kumar said he will ask the Centre to appoint the Central Industrial Security Forces (CISF) to guard the world-famous temple.
Here are the latest developments:
The Bihar Police procured the CCTV footage from about 15 cameras installed in the temple and are examining it further for clues. Ten blasts took place and three live bombs were recovered from the holy Buddhist site.
The bomb analysis report says the bombs were very similar to those used in Jaipur, Pune and Ahmedabad blasts. The bombs were triggered by analogue timer clocks which were set for 5.30 am. It also says 150-200 grams of ammonium nitrate was used as the explosive material in each bomb.
Home Minister Sushil Kumar Shinde today said his ministry has information that there were actually ten blasts in Bodh Gaya, and not nine as he said yesterday after the attack. He added that 13 bombs in all were planted across the temple. Mr Shinde also identified the two Buddhist monks injured in the attack as Dorji, 50 and Saga, 30.
The Home Ministry yesterday confirmed it was a "terror attack." The National Investigation Agency (NIA) is probing the blast. An NIA team reached Bodh Gaya on Sunday evening. The National Security Guard too will investigate the blasts.
Chief Minister Nitish Kumar today accused the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) of politicising the Bodh Gaya serial blasts, alleging a nexus between the two parties.
The opposition Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) have called for bandh today in the Magadh region of the state to protest against the failure of the Nitish Kumar government in providing security to the temple.
A suspected Indian Mujahideen man Anwar Hussain Mallik has been arrested from the Nadia district in West Bengal and will be questioned on the multiple blasts. Mallik was arrested yesterday with Rs 1.9 lakh in fake currency. The police allege that he had supplied explosives for the 2010 Pune German Bakery blasts which killed 17 people.
Security was lax at the temple. This despite the special cell of the Delhi Police having sent an intelligence input in October last to Bihar about a possible strike on the Mahabodhi temple by the Indian Mujahideen.
The outer periphery of the Mahabodhi temple is guarded by the Bihar Police while the temple premises by private security guards. According to reports, there were just four guards on duty when the blasts occurred. After the alert, the temple had hired a private security agency, but there was allegedly no initiative by the Bihar Police to secure the important religious and tourist spot.
Gaya District Magistrate D Balamurugan has said the Buddhist temple, also a UNESCO World Heritage site, will open to devotees in the evening today, 36 hours after the bombings.
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