Arrests fit in with initial Bangalore blast findings

Khomani and Siddiqui are believed to have been among the four who planted the eight bombs at the stadium,allegedly under the guidance of Yasin Bhatkal. While six of the bombs had failed,a security guard had been seriously injured by one of the two bombs that exploded.

Initial investigations too had indicated a Tumkur link since the unexploded bombs were found wrapped in the limited edition Tumkur copies of a local newspaper.

The police are hoping to obtain custody of the accused to identify the places they claimed to have stayed at in order to push investigations forward. A suspect who is believed to have helped arrange the stay of the attackers at Tumkur fled the country on April 16,the night before the blasts,sources said.

In his account of the Bangalore attack provided to investigators since his arrest last week,Khomani has claimed he was reluctant to participate in the plot but was convinced by Yasin at the Bangalore central bus station that the bombs were not intended to cause damage but to only scare people.

Khomani and Siddiqui have also reportedly told investigators that Yasin taught them how to arm the bombs and that they had carried the bombs to the stadium on the night of April 16 and completed the circuitry only after they reached there. Yasin reportedly himself planted the bombs.

The ammonium nitrate gel used of brand Rajgel 90 and a Samay quartz clock timer used in the bombs also indicated an IM role,as these were similar to other attacks attributed to the outfit.

“Rajgel 90 was the explosive used for the Ahmedabad blasts and for the failed Surat blasts — both linked to the Indian Mujahideen. The setting of the timers was also done in a signature way associated with the IM,” sources said.

Investigators believe Yasin had access to some source of the Rajgel 90 brand. While half a dozen suppliers of the material in Karnataka and the manufacturers themselves have been questioned,this has not yielded much so far,sources said.