A suicide bomb attack on the office of the Hyderabad Police Commissioner’s Task Force on Wednesday came with echoes of the July 7 bombings in London. The link, police say — the modus operandi of the bombers.A man aged 18-23 walked into the Task Force office, located barely 100 metres from Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Y S Rajashekhar Reddy’s residence, with a haversack on his back and blasted the office to bits on Dussehra night.The bomber and a sentry on duty were killed.“The attack was definitely inspired by the London attacks. The suicide bomber was a well-dressed youth carrying the explosives in the manner the London bombers did,” a senior Hyderabad city police official said.Senior police officers, including Task Force chief Venkat Reddy, had left the office by the time the attack occurred at 7.30 pm.Going by the bomber’s body parts and pieces of paper found at the reception, police have concluded that he was a fidayeen and not linked to Naxalites.Andhra Director General of Police Swaranjit Sen said yesterday the attack could have been an Inter-Services Intelligence operation. Three pieces of paper which the bomber is thought to have been carrying were found at the blast site. They had “intikhab”, “jihad” and “Mujahid 75” written on them in English.The “Mujahid 75” slip has led police to think the attack may be linked to the October 2004 death of a youth, Mujahid, in police firing in Hyderabad. The youth was part of a group seeking the release of Maulana Naseeruddin, who was jailed in Gujarat for his alleged role in the murder of former minister Haren Pandya.Hyderabad police are yet to identify Wednesday’s suicide bomber and are waiting for a forensic report on the kind of bomb used and how it was detonated.However, they have managed to get a clear profile of the bomber as the front part of his head remained intact. They have sought the help of their counterparts across India to identify the bomber. Police have not yet zeroed in on the motive for the attack.The Task Force has recently foiled ISI attempts to recruit local youth and has arrested those thought to be linked to extremist groups. The bombing has got the police worried. “The attack shows that the bomber has undergone some sort of serious terrorist training. This is a first for Hyderabad. This means that well trained, motivated people are being sent here. There is a need to improve security in Hyderabad,” a senior police official said.
