In yet another turn to the Malegaon blast case that could have far-reaching diplomatic implications, the Haryana Police has sent a team to question Sadhvi Pragya Singh Thakur and Lt Col Srikant Prasad Purohit in relation to the Samjhauta Express blast probe.

A team led by Haryana ADG (Law and Order) V N Rai is now in Mumbai to probe the alleged role of Hindu extremists in the blast on the Indo-Pakistan friendship train that killed 68 on February 19, 2007 near Panipat.

The Haryana police team hopes to pick up the investigation from Indore where the trail last went cold.

With this, the Malegaon investigation is spreading much beyond its original ambit. For, the CBI director told The Indian Express last week that a link has already been established between the Malegaon blast and the one in Nanded two years ago in which two Bajrang Dal activists were killed while they were allegedly making a pipe bomb.

DGP Ranjiv Dalal confirmed the Indore connection was a strong reason for the team to now question Purohit and Thakur.

Thakur lived in Indore for a while and attended religious functions there.

Dalal, however, said the finer details like similarity of nature of explosives used in Malegaon blasts and so on were yet to be shared by the Mumbai ATS. “Our senior level officials are keeping in close contact with the Mumbai ATS and we are awaiting more details from them. While nothing new has come out of it yet, we are very keen to crack the case and are working on it”, Dalal said. Pakistan has repeatedly raised the train blast probe issue at all anti-terror meets that have taken place after the Samjhauta blast.

... contd.