Baby killed, 20 hurt in blast in temple city of Varanasi - Summary

Tue, 07 Dec 2010

New Delhi - A baby girl was killed and at least 20 people were injured in a bomb explosion Tuesday in northern India's temple city of Varanasi, officials and news reports said.

The blast took place during evening prayers at the Shitla Ghat bathing area on the banks of the Ganges river near the Vishwanath temple.

Home Secretary GK Pillai told reporters four or five people were injured in the "low-intensity blast" and another 15 to 20 people were hurt in the stampede in the commotion that followed.

A one-and-a-half year old girl succumbed to injuries at a hospital later, the NDTV network reported quoting police sources.

Four foreign nationals including an Italian and French citizen were among the injured.

Police said the blast appeared to be a terrorist attack and the explosive was planted in a milk container kept near the stone staircase that leads to the river.

Meanwhile, in an email sent to local media outlets, a group claiming to be Indian Mujahideen - an outfit behind similar bombings across Indian cities in the past - owned responsibility and warned of more attacks.

India's Home Ministry was cautious about the claim and said the authenticity of the email was being verified.

"It is an attempt to weaken our resolve to fight the evil forces of terrorism. In this, the terrorists will not succeed," Prime Minister Manmohan Singh said in New Delhi.

Singh expressed concern and appealed to the religious communities to maintain calm and peace.

Varanasi, considered to be Hinduism's holiest city, is located in northern state of Uttar Pradesh and has witnessed religious violence and terrorist attacks in the past.

In March 2006, at least 15 people were killed in three blasts in the city which Indian police blamed on Muslim militants.

The explosion came a day after the anniversary of the 1992 destruction of the Babri mosque in the Ayodhya town of the same state by Hindu radicals.

At least four of the wounded taken to hospitals were in a "serious condition" and doctors said the death toll could rise.

Witnesses said the explosion was powerful and shook nearby buildings and damaged iron railings.

"There was a loud blast followed by chaos. Scores who had gathered on the banks ran helter skelter," a witness, Rajiv Prajapati said.

Soon after the blast, hundreds of police were patrolling the sensitive towns and cities in Uttar Pradesh.

The home ministry placed security agencies on high alert across Indian states as well as the main cities of New Delhi, Mumbai, Bangalore and Hyderabad.

New Delhi has upgraded its police forces following the Mumbai attacks in November 2008 which killed 166 people and derailed a peace process between India and Pakistan.

The last major terrorist strike in India was a bombing in February in the south-western city of Pune that killed 17 people including four foreign nationals.

Source: Earth Times.
Link: http://www.earthtimes.org/articles/news/357039,city-varanasi-summary.html.