We are close to solving the blasts case: Deshmukh

A breakthrough in the Mumbai blast case is expected soon, Maharashtra Chief Minister Vilasrao Deshmukh said.

A breakthrough in the Mumbai blast case is expected soon, Maharashtra Chief Minister Vilasrao Deshmukh said.

Talking to The Indian Express Editor-in-Chief Shekhar Gupta on NDTV8217;s Walk the Talk programme, Deshmukh said: 8216;8216;Progress in investigations is satisfactory and I can assure you that we will book the culprits very soon.8217;8217;

Asked if it will take 8216;8216;days or weeks,8217;8217; the chief minister said: 8216;8216;It could be sooner than that.8217;8217; 8216;8216;I am confident of a breakthrough,8217;8217; he said.

The chief minister said as head of the government it is his responsibility that all departments, including Home, functioned effectively. He denied that the Maharashtra police was distracted into peripheral issues such as wardrobe malfunctioning at fashion shows and banning dance bars. 8216;8216;Whatever we have done was done in public interest,8217;8217; he said.

Deshmukh said it 8220;would be well and good8221; if Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi deferred his proposed visit to Mumbai to protest the blasts. 8220;Deferring the meeting is more sensible. The police are investigating the case, and let them do their job.8221; The BJP has now decided to hold Modi8217;s public meeting at the Shanmukhananda Hall.

The chief minister said he was happy the way opposition BJP and Shiv Sena behaved in the aftermath of the blasts. 8216;8216;They have supported the government and showed unity,8217;8217; he said.

Deshmukh said the police were investigating the extent of local support for terror networks, but said he was confident that the recent incidents would not affect HIndu-Muslim unity in the state. 8216;8216;We have learnt our lessons and nobody in Maharashtra wants to repeat the mistakes,8217;8217; he said.

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The Chief Minister, who said the dismantling of the encounter squads and the Telgi scandal had not affected the morale of the police, admitted that there was need for revamping the intelligence service.

He said there were warnings from intelligence agencies of an impending attack but they were not specific.

Asked why has Maharashtra become the nervecentre of terror activities, Deshmukh said: 8216;8216;An attack on Maharashtra is seen as an attack on India8230;. It is the economic capital of the country, and it is a cosmopolitan city where Indians from all states and regions are seen.8217;8217;