The bajrang bomb?

The Bajrang Dal says the two men who died in Sunday8217;s Kanpur blast were its members. However, the police say they are still exploring the link.

At a time when probes in several recent serial blasts have led investigators to Uttar Pradesh, the explosion in Kanpur on August 24 made everyone take note. However, the findings are not what the police may have bargained for. The two who died in the blast were making explosive devices at the time and, it is believed, had links with a Hindu outfit. What also surprised investigators was the quantity of explosives found.

While the Bajrang Dal has since owned up both Rajeev Mishra and Bhupinder Singh 8212; though adding that they were inactive members of the outfit 8212; the police have said they have no evidence to confirm the same. While Kanpur zone IG S N Singh admits that 8220;the recovery reveals the plan was for a massive explosion8221;, the police have no idea as to where the explosives came from or what these were meant for.

Incidentally, Singh had five cases registered against him in the 1992 riots, including one of arrest with a petrol bomb. Mishra had no known criminal record.

The blast that killed Mishra and Singh took place in a house owned by Mishra8217;s father in Rajeev Nagar. The house functioned as a private hostel for students and the room in which the explosion took place was used by Mishra, who worked in Lucknow and visited Kanpur every Sunday. Manager of the hostel Raj Kishore Srivastava said Singh and Mishra had met each other during the meetings of the Bajrang Dal and become friends.

When the police arrived after the blast on Sunday, it found in the room 3 kg lead oxide, 500 grammes red lead, 1 kg potassium nitrate, 11 countrymade grenades, several bomb pins, seven timers and batteries 8212; all meant for making improvised explosive devices. The countrymade hand grenades, which the police say were hollow, were similar in shape and size to those used by the defence forces.

The provincial general secretary of the Vishwa Hindu Parishad, Awadh Behari Mishra, told The Indian Express: 8220;Both Mishra and Singh were members of the Bajrang Dal, but had been inactive for a long time.8221; Though Mishra was just a member of the Bajrang Dal, Singh held the important post of Kanpur City Convener in 2001-02.

8220;After his marriage, Bhupinder became inclined towards his professional career and did not take much interest in our activities,8221; the VHP leader said. 8220;Similarly, Rajeev too was a Bajrang Dal member but was inactive as he was working in Lucknow and came to Kanpur only once a week.8221; He added that neither Mishra nor Singh was involved in illegal activities.

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Bajrang Dal national convenor Prakash Sharma claimed the same. 8220;Rajeev and Bhupinder have maintained a distance from the organisation for long and were not in touch with any of the senior members.8221; He said he had no knowledge of their involvement in any illegal activity.

SSP of Kanpur Ashok Kumar Singh, however, said he is still not convinced the two were Bajrang Dal members. 8220;We do not have any official papers to prove this,8221; he said.

Admitting that they were yet to make a breakthrough, IG Singh said the police were looking into the antecedents of Mishra and Singh, questioning their relatives, and studying their cellphone records. While Mishra8217;s family has come out to say that they have had no relations with their son for a long time, Bhupinder8217;s has shunned the media.

In raids on Singh8217;s Lajpat Nagar photo studio and his residence, the police have found a hand-drawn map of Ferozabad and a diary. Some powder was also found at his residence, though different from the substance found at the blast site. SSP Singh said they had spoken to Vijay who worked as an assistant at Singh8217;s photo studio, but he had not provided any significant leads.

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Bhupinder Singh8217;s record shows five cases against his name in the 1992 riots, all registered at the Kakadeo police station. On August 31, 1997, one Virendra Pratap had registered a case with the Kalyanpur police station against Uday Shankar, Om Mishra and Daljit Singh and alleged them of attacking him. Though Singh8217;s name was not included in the FIR, Virendra Pratap had accused him of firing and hurling countrymade bombs during a Trade Committee election at Ram Lalla Vidyalaya, Rawatpur.

Shakya said: 8220;Virendra has claimed that Bhupinder had fired a bullet and hurled countrymade bombs at him.8221; Virendra and one Guddu Mishra were injured in the incident.

Questions have been raised over the fact that the police got a student of the hostel where the blast happened to file an FIR instead of filing one themselves. It was this student, Pradeep Soni, who had called up the police after the explosion. Soni is apprehensive now of being dragged into the case. IG Singh, however, played this down. From a legal point of view, 8220;it is better that a local resident lodges the case8221;, he says.

More explosives found

A stone8217;s throw away from the Kanpur house where explosives were recovered on Sunday, similar seizures were made on Tuesday morning. The two empty shells and explosives were found in a jute bag in a drain in the Shastri Nagar area under the Kalyanpur Police Station after some people noticed it and alerted the police. Kanpur zone IG S N Singh said the shells could carry one kg explosive. The powder that was also recovered would be sent to IIT-Kanpur for tests.