Hyderabad twin blasts: Hunt for similarities with 2002 and 2007 explosions

The Hyderabad twin blasts on Thursday marked the second time Dilsukhnagar has been targeted in the last decade. On November 21, 2002, a bomb exploded just outside the famous Sai Baba temple, killing a couple, Padma and Prakash Reddy.

The "tiffin bomb" had been kept in the compartment of a scooter parked near the gate of the temple. Another bomb, placed outside another temple, did not explode.

Former Students Islamic Movement of India (SIMI) president Syed Salahuddin Salar was arrested in that case. He is lodged in Hyderabad jail at present.

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Police also arrested the main accused, Abdul Razak alias Masood, an alleged LeT operative. Razak, who was out on bail, committed suicide last October at his home in Mehdipatnam, accusing the police of harassing him.

Two other alleged LeT members, Azam Gori and Syed Abdul Aziz, who were allegedly involved in placing the bombs, were shot dead in separate encounters by police in Karimnagar and Hyderabad outskirts respectively.

From the initial leads into today's blasts, investigators are probing the possibility of the use of "tiffin bombs". Officials pointed out that "tiffin bombs" were also used by the Indian Mujahideen (IM) in earlier cases.

While a team of National Investigation Agency (NIA) officials from Hyderabad rushed to the spot today, another team comprising personnel from the NIA, NSG and CFSL was sent from New Delhi.

The probe team is also examining the circumstances surrounding the arrest of Sayed Maqbool from Old City area in Hyderabad in connection with the 2012 Pune blasts.

Forensic experts said they would look for any similarity with previous blasts, including the 2007 Mecca Masjid case in which right-wing outfits have been named.

Nine people were killed in the Mecca Masjid blast on May 18, 2007. Though the Hyderabad Police arrested many Muslim youths in connection with the blast, it was later found to be the handiwork of the right wing terror network led by Swami Aseemanand. All were later acquitted by courts.

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