Forensic lab report shows links among ‘Hindu terror bombs’
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Rahul Tripathi : New Delhi, Mon Jan 07 2013, 09:31 hrs
The report from a Hyderabad lab, accessed by The Indian Express, points out several similarities in the six blasts — including the bomb and bomb container used, the bomb-making techniques, the electronic circuit, and the arming and trigger mechanisms.
This boosts the investigators’ case which had been hit by Swami Aseemanand retracting his statement that right-wing groups and RSS leader Indresh Kumar were instrumental in planning and executing the above attacks. In the 2010 statement, Aseemanand had also named Sunil Joshi, Ramji Kalsangra and Sandeep Dange as “key planners”.
The National Investigation Agency, which started investigations in 2011, has since then arrested five bombers.
The one similarity in all the six cases was the main charge — RDX and TNT.
Talking of the Samjhauta, Mecca Masjid and Ajmer blasts, the forensic report says, “identical keys in all three bombs were used to arm the explosive while LED, electronic circuit and power source used in all three cases were also similar to each other. The power sources in all three cases were found to be battery with screws on the case with red wires. A similar characterstic of power source was also noticed in the 2008 Modasa bomb”.
While in the Samjhauta blast, a single-cylinder module was used, from the Mecca Masjid blast onwards, the groups apparently only used “double cylinder module”, later also seen in the Ajmer attack, as well as the blasts in Malegaon (2008) and Modasa.
The report also talks of similarities in the signature of bombs used in the Samjhauta, Ajmer and Mecca Masjid attacks, including the wax used and obliterations.
As for the trigger mechanism, forensics found that an Orpat watch was used in the Samjhauta attack. As per an NSG report, an Orpat watch was also used in the 2006 Malegaon blasts. Mecca Masjid and Ajmer bombs were triggered using identical mobile phones of Nokia 6030 model.
Detonators used in the 2008 Malegaon blast and the Modasa and Samjhauta attacks were also found to have several similarities. In all three cases, fragments of detonators had a manufacturer label, “IDL 21”.
The bombs and containers in Mecca Masjid and Ajmer blasts had the most striking similarities. In the two cases, black iron boxes were used. A booster in the form of “tetryl” to give a charge to the detonators was used at Mecca Masjid and Ajmer.
The analysis also clearly indicates the differences between these bombs and the bombs used by the Indian Mujahideen (IM), which has been active since 2005. Unlike the Hindu terror groups, the IM first used C-shaped open wooden boxes that held the circuit, with holes on the side for wires to pass. The explosive was essentially tightly packed ammonium nitrate, held together by fuel oil or nitrogen gel, metal balls and nuts for splinters and had an alarm clock for a timer. The use of Prince or Samay watches was found in these IEDs. Such bombs went off in UP, Ahmedabad, Bangalore, Delhi, Jaipur and Mumbai.
NIA case gets a boost
Report studied bombs used at Malegaon (2006, 2008), Ajmer Sharif, Mecca Masjid, Modasa and on Samjhauta Express
Main explosive:
RDX, TNT in all attacks
Second charge: Potassium chlorate used in all 6 incidents
Electronic circuit:
Similar in Samjhauta, Mecca Masjid, Ajmer attacks
Detonator:
Similar in Samjhauta, Modasa, Malegaon (2008) attacks
