TNI Bureau: Four low-intensity bomb blasts rocked Pune on Wednesday evening leaving one hurt. 14 states have been put on high alert including Delhi, Maharashtra and Uttar Pradesh.
Sources said that it was a planned attack. The materials used in the bombs such as wires, watches and detonators have been recovered from the blast sites. However, Pune Police commissioner Gulabrao Pol ruled out the possibility of terror attack. He said that it was not a terror attack, it was some mischief, it was low intensity blast.
But Union Home Secretary RK Singh said terror angle cannot be ruled out since it seems to be a planned attack.
Union Home Minister Sushil Kumar Shinde said that nothing could be said till the probe is not over.
The blasts took place between 7:25 pm and 8:15 pm on Wednesday evening. The first three blasts took place near Dena Bank, Bal Gandharv theatre and a McDonalds outlet on the Jungli Maharaj Road, while the fourth blast was reported from Garware Chowk.
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The Bomb-disposal squads successfully defused the fifth bomb near a McDonalds outlet in the city. Police said that one bomb was placed in a garbage can, another was on a cycle carrier.
The Maharashtra ATS and the NIA, are examining CCTV footage from at least 3 sites. They are also trying to trace the owner of the bicycles found at a site.
Maharashtra Home Minister RR Patil said that investigating agencies are probing all angles to determine whether the low intensity blasts were carried out by any terror outfit.
Meanwhile, the injured person Dayanand Patil is being quizzed by the police. He hails from a nearby village of Uruli Kanchan. He had reportedly visited the opposite the Balgandharva Theatre, where the supporters India Against Corruption (IAC) were staging a dharna in support of Anna Hazare movement against corruption.
The explosives were reportedly put in his carry bag. He claimed that he picked up two bags from the protest venue, out of which one exploded on the way. The IAC activists were asked to vacate the site on Thursday, following which the organisation suspended its agitation for one day.
Police said that two of the Improvised Explosive Devices (IEDs) that did not explode in Pune have been sent for forensic examination.