05-14-2008, 01:27 AM
<!--QuoteBegin-->QUOTE<!--QuoteEBegin--><b>Pink city turns red, 70 dead </b>
Pioneer.com
Lokpal Sethi | Jaipur
7 blasts in 15 minutes at crowded places in Jaipur; HuJI hand suspected
In one of the worst terrorist attacks, seven powerful bomb blasts rocked the Pink City, killing at least 70 people and injuring another 200 on Tuesday evening. Among the killed were about a dozen women.
The death toll is likely to go up as the condition of some of the injured is stated to be serious.
The serial bomb blasts took place in the crowded walled city around 7.30 pm, the peak shopping time in this business district of the State capital.
<b>It appeared that Hawa Mahal, the landmark of Jaipur, and the temples in this 300-year-old city, were the main targets of the terrorists, who are yet to be identified.</b>
<span style='font-size:14pt;line-height:100%'>Being Tuesday, the turnout in these temples was larger than usual. Moreover, it was aarti time in these temples when the blasts occurred. </span>
<b>The first bomb exploded near Chandpole temple. Within 15 minutes, six blasts one after the other rocked Chhoti Chaupar, Tripolia Bazaar, Badi Chaupar and Jauhari Bazaar. All these places are within a few hundred yards from the State police headquarters. In fact, two blasts took place close to Manak Chowk (Badi Chaupar) and Chhoti Chaupar police stations. </b>
Manak Chowk is located close to the Hawa Mahal. An old temple is also located here. The last of these serial blasts took place near Hanuman temple at Sanganer Gate, which is the entrance to the Jauhari Bazaar.
According to initial reports,<b> the bomb that exploded near Hanuman temple was kept in a car, whereas the other bombs were either kept in the dickeys of the scooters or on the bicycles</b>. Soon after the blasts, a<b> bomb disposal squad detected three live bombs and defused them</b>.
Police said RDX might have been used in these bombs, which were fitted with timers and triggered by a remote control.
<b>The bomb that exploded near a well-known restaurant in Jauhari Bazaar was so powerful that one of the dead was flown off to the other side of the road</b>. Many vehicles, including cars and scooters, were damaged in all the three markets. Electric polls in Jauhari Bazaar were either blown over or bent vertically. The entire Jauhari Bazaar was littered with blood and flesh as three bombs had exploded on this very road at a distance of a few hundred yards of each other.
Though police suspect the hand of Bangladesh-based HuJI behind the attack, it is yet to find any link between the blasts and this outfit. Since nearby Ramganj area in the walled city is dominated by Muslims, a large number of police contingents have been deployed there to avoid any untoward incident.
<b>Meanwhile, State unit of the Vishwa Hindu Parishad has given the call for Rajasthan bandh against this terrorist attack.</b>
Governor SK Singh and Home Minister Gulab Chand Kataria visited the areas soon after the explosions. Chief Minister Vasundhara Raje, who was away in Jodhpur, reached here late in the night after cutting short her visit. She also spoke to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and gave details of the incident.
It is for the first time that Jaipur has been targeted by the terrorists. Scores of wounded people were taken to several hospitals soon after the blasts near Hanuman temple.
Rajasthan Director General of Police AS Gill said it was "obviously a terror attack." Police sources said the attack was meticulously planned.
In New Delhi, the Union Home Ministry reviewed the situation as Mumbai and Delhi were put on high alert.
Rapid Action Force (RAF) personnel were deployed in Jaipur to help deal with the situation as security was stepped up in the city.
The injured were rushed to Sawai Man Singh hospital, it was reported.
The blasts triggered a near-stampede situation at the blast sites crammed with peak-hour shoppers as panic-stricken people ran helter-skelter in search of a safe place. The emergency ward at the Sawai Man Singh Hospital was splattered with blood as scores of dead and injured lay there.
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Pioneer.com
Lokpal Sethi | Jaipur
7 blasts in 15 minutes at crowded places in Jaipur; HuJI hand suspected
In one of the worst terrorist attacks, seven powerful bomb blasts rocked the Pink City, killing at least 70 people and injuring another 200 on Tuesday evening. Among the killed were about a dozen women.
The death toll is likely to go up as the condition of some of the injured is stated to be serious.
The serial bomb blasts took place in the crowded walled city around 7.30 pm, the peak shopping time in this business district of the State capital.
<b>It appeared that Hawa Mahal, the landmark of Jaipur, and the temples in this 300-year-old city, were the main targets of the terrorists, who are yet to be identified.</b>
<span style='font-size:14pt;line-height:100%'>Being Tuesday, the turnout in these temples was larger than usual. Moreover, it was aarti time in these temples when the blasts occurred. </span>
<b>The first bomb exploded near Chandpole temple. Within 15 minutes, six blasts one after the other rocked Chhoti Chaupar, Tripolia Bazaar, Badi Chaupar and Jauhari Bazaar. All these places are within a few hundred yards from the State police headquarters. In fact, two blasts took place close to Manak Chowk (Badi Chaupar) and Chhoti Chaupar police stations. </b>
Manak Chowk is located close to the Hawa Mahal. An old temple is also located here. The last of these serial blasts took place near Hanuman temple at Sanganer Gate, which is the entrance to the Jauhari Bazaar.
According to initial reports,<b> the bomb that exploded near Hanuman temple was kept in a car, whereas the other bombs were either kept in the dickeys of the scooters or on the bicycles</b>. Soon after the blasts, a<b> bomb disposal squad detected three live bombs and defused them</b>.
Police said RDX might have been used in these bombs, which were fitted with timers and triggered by a remote control.
<b>The bomb that exploded near a well-known restaurant in Jauhari Bazaar was so powerful that one of the dead was flown off to the other side of the road</b>. Many vehicles, including cars and scooters, were damaged in all the three markets. Electric polls in Jauhari Bazaar were either blown over or bent vertically. The entire Jauhari Bazaar was littered with blood and flesh as three bombs had exploded on this very road at a distance of a few hundred yards of each other.
Though police suspect the hand of Bangladesh-based HuJI behind the attack, it is yet to find any link between the blasts and this outfit. Since nearby Ramganj area in the walled city is dominated by Muslims, a large number of police contingents have been deployed there to avoid any untoward incident.
<b>Meanwhile, State unit of the Vishwa Hindu Parishad has given the call for Rajasthan bandh against this terrorist attack.</b>
Governor SK Singh and Home Minister Gulab Chand Kataria visited the areas soon after the explosions. Chief Minister Vasundhara Raje, who was away in Jodhpur, reached here late in the night after cutting short her visit. She also spoke to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and gave details of the incident.
It is for the first time that Jaipur has been targeted by the terrorists. Scores of wounded people were taken to several hospitals soon after the blasts near Hanuman temple.
Rajasthan Director General of Police AS Gill said it was "obviously a terror attack." Police sources said the attack was meticulously planned.
In New Delhi, the Union Home Ministry reviewed the situation as Mumbai and Delhi were put on high alert.
Rapid Action Force (RAF) personnel were deployed in Jaipur to help deal with the situation as security was stepped up in the city.
The injured were rushed to Sawai Man Singh hospital, it was reported.
The blasts triggered a near-stampede situation at the blast sites crammed with peak-hour shoppers as panic-stricken people ran helter-skelter in search of a safe place. The emergency ward at the Sawai Man Singh Hospital was splattered with blood as scores of dead and injured lay there.
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