PATNA: Links to any terror or Maoist outfit – in the powerful explosion at an illegal firecracker manufacturing unit at Bhagalpur – will be probed, the Bihar anti-terrorism squad (ATS) has revealed. A series of bomb blasts in Bhagalpur in the last five months have unnerved top police officers of the state.
Director General of Police (DGP) S K Singhal, who is keeping a close watch on developments in the blast case, said the investigators would also find out the modus operandi of earlier incidents of bomb explosion in the town to ascertain any links with Thursday’s incident in which 14 people were killed and 10 others seriously wounded.
At least five incidents of bomb blasts, including three major ones, took place in a span of five days in December last year in which two lives were lost and several injured. Two other incidents were also reported. Frequent explosions, however, prompted the police to launch a combing operation leading to recovery of 12 bombs, which were subsequently defused.Thursday’s explosion reminded people of a similar incident in Khurshupur in Patna in 2005 which killed 27 people.