Forensic lab report shows links among ‘Hindu terror bombs’

The NIA has received a forensic report showing that bombs used in the blasts at Malegaon (2006, 2008), Ajmer Sharif (2007), Mecca Masjid in Hyderabad (2007), Modasa in Gujarat (2008) and on board the Samjhauta Express (2006) bear similarities with each other.

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.

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