Putting the functioning of anti-terror operations under the scanner and in the public domain, a red-faced Maharashtra ATS on Monday retracted an alleged submission in the court that Lt Col Srikant Prasad Purohit had misappropriated 60 kg of RDX from the Army for use in the train blasts.
ATS counsel Ajay Misar, who had earlier told a Nashik court that RDX was used in the Samjhauta Express blast, attempted to undo the damage on Sunday, by accusing the media of misinterpreting his statement in court.
Misar said that he had only informed the court that the police were still investigating whether 60 kg RDX, allegedly handed by the Army to Purohit to be deposited in its artillery unit in J&K, was used in some of the blasts carried out across the country, including the September 29 Malegaon explosion.
Forensic experts had earlier ruled out the use of RDX in the Samjhauta bombing. It said that the material used in the blast was a highly flammable cocktail of fuel oils, potassium chlorate and sulphur.
According to a Haryana FSL report based on investigations conducted on the two unexploded suitcase bombs recovered from the amity train, the “firebombs” were assembled using light-emitting diodes (LEDs) and explosives bottles preserved with high quality sealants, which apart from covering the foul smell also helped explosives detonate with greater intensity.
The Haryana police had released sketches of two suspects and subsequently a suspect identified as Salman was picked up from Rajasthan. The police also identified a Pakistani national who allegedly threw one of the suitcase bombs off the running train. In March, the police arrested two people from Indore who had allegedly sold the suitcases used in the bombing.
The Army too has ruled out the possibility of Purohit ‘dipping into’ its RDX reserves. The Indian Army, sources told the agencies, is not known to use or store RDX. The explosives used by the Army are TNT and plastic explosives (PEK). Also, explosives seized by the Army in J&K are either destroyed on the spot or handed over to the police.
Explosive seizures, if any, are handled by the infantry and not intelligence personnel. Earlier, Misar had told Chief Judicial Magistrate H K Gantra of Nashik court that a person named Bhagwan had received 60 kg RDX from Malegaon blast accused Lt Col Purohit.
According to an ATS witness Purohit held 60 kg RDX in his possession while he was posted in Deolali, Nashik, which he did not hand over, to the Army’s artillery department in J&K, as directed.
On Monday, ATS also came under scrutiny for allegedly torturing accused Sadhvi Pragya Singh in custody, with her lawyers filing an affidavit in court alleging that she was assaulted by a man called Kanvikar.
With huge political support for the accused in the Malegaon case failing to cut ice with the Maharashtra ATS, the plight of the less fortunate, arrested on suspicion of terrorism, is only imaginable.
(With Internet Inputs)
ATS counsel Ajay Misar, who had earlier told a Nashik court that RDX was used in the Samjhauta Express blast, attempted to undo the damage on Sunday, by accusing the media of misinterpreting his statement in court.
Misar said that he had only informed the court that the police were still investigating whether 60 kg RDX, allegedly handed by the Army to Purohit to be deposited in its artillery unit in J&K, was used in some of the blasts carried out across the country, including the September 29 Malegaon explosion.
Forensic experts had earlier ruled out the use of RDX in the Samjhauta bombing. It said that the material used in the blast was a highly flammable cocktail of fuel oils, potassium chlorate and sulphur.
According to a Haryana FSL report based on investigations conducted on the two unexploded suitcase bombs recovered from the amity train, the “firebombs” were assembled using light-emitting diodes (LEDs) and explosives bottles preserved with high quality sealants, which apart from covering the foul smell also helped explosives detonate with greater intensity.
The Haryana police had released sketches of two suspects and subsequently a suspect identified as Salman was picked up from Rajasthan. The police also identified a Pakistani national who allegedly threw one of the suitcase bombs off the running train. In March, the police arrested two people from Indore who had allegedly sold the suitcases used in the bombing.
The Army too has ruled out the possibility of Purohit ‘dipping into’ its RDX reserves. The Indian Army, sources told the agencies, is not known to use or store RDX. The explosives used by the Army are TNT and plastic explosives (PEK). Also, explosives seized by the Army in J&K are either destroyed on the spot or handed over to the police.
Explosive seizures, if any, are handled by the infantry and not intelligence personnel. Earlier, Misar had told Chief Judicial Magistrate H K Gantra of Nashik court that a person named Bhagwan had received 60 kg RDX from Malegaon blast accused Lt Col Purohit.
According to an ATS witness Purohit held 60 kg RDX in his possession while he was posted in Deolali, Nashik, which he did not hand over, to the Army’s artillery department in J&K, as directed.
On Monday, ATS also came under scrutiny for allegedly torturing accused Sadhvi Pragya Singh in custody, with her lawyers filing an affidavit in court alleging that she was assaulted by a man called Kanvikar.
With huge political support for the accused in the Malegaon case failing to cut ice with the Maharashtra ATS, the plight of the less fortunate, arrested on suspicion of terrorism, is only imaginable.
(With Internet Inputs)
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