The wounded being taken away after blast in the local train in Bengal's Titagarh
A crude bomb blast in a local train in West Bengal's Titagarh early this morning left six people seriously injured and hospitalised. One of them was a 18-year-old, who had his hand blown off and is suspected to have bene the one carrying the bomb.
Raja Das, who already has a police record for petty crime, has been arrested.
The train, which was on its way to Krishnanagar in Nadia district, had left Kolkata's Sealdah station 3.20 am. At 3:55 am, just after it left Titagarh station, a bomb exploded in the fifth compartment. There was blood on the floor and panic in the air.
In no time, politics kicked in.
"Pingla, then Burdwan and today at Titagarh... All of Bengal has become a bomb making factory." claimed state BJP chief Rahul Sinha.
The CPM's Surya Kanta Mishra, too, blamed the state government. "The state government is sponsoring them. The ruling party people are involved and the truth is being suppressed here," he said.
The ruling Trinamool Congress blamed the railways. "It is the railways that failed to provide security," said senior party leader Jyoti Priya Mallik.
There are no metal detectors at Titagarh and had there been one, it is doubtful if it would have detected the crude bomb, the police said.
The incident has alarmed train users. "Security here depends upon God," said Ashok Chowdhury, a commuter. Puja Dutta, a college student, said, "There is no security at Titagarh station. What to do? I just heard about the bomb blast. I am scared."