INDIA: Police in Bombay continued to search for definite clues yesterday concerning the perpetrators responsible for the serial car-bombs that killed 52 people earlier this week, with senior officers contradicting one another on their specious "findings".
City Police Commissioner Mr Ranjit Sharma, following the line propagated by deputy Indian Prime Minister Mr Lal Krishna Advani, blamed a banned local Muslim youth organisation for the explosions in the heart of the city, which also injured 150 people.
But Mr Satyapal Singh, one of the commissioner's assistants, told journalists that the police suspected two Pakistan-backed organisations involved in fighting the Muslim insurgency in Kashmir. On a visit to Bombay a day after the blasts, Mr Advani had pointed the finger of blame at neighbouring Pakistan and at one of the two groups mentioned by Mr Singh. But no conclusive evidence has yet surfaced.
India blames Pakistan's secret service for fuelling the 14-year old Kashmiri insurgency by "sponsoring" Islamic insurgent groups in the disputed region that is divided between the two but claimed by both. It also blames Pakistan for frequent terrorist activity across the country, all allegations that Islamabad denies.
Meanwhile, Mr Advani said that Bombay's car bombings and the series of attacks in Indian-administered Kashmir could "hurt" the ongoing peace talks with Pakistan.
Prime Minister Mr Atal Behari Vajpayee has said that cross-border terrorism (sponsored by Pakistan) has to end. The infrastructure created for terrorism has to be dismantled by Pakistan, Mr Advani added.