Blast damages Singur site wall
Monday, March 19, 2007
SINGUR (Hooghly), March 18: A portion of the boundary wall of the Tata Motors' small car project site at Singur was damaged early today when explosives planted inside hollow iron pipes kept hidden in a drainage outlet went off. Explosives secreted in six other drainage outlets of the boundary wall near a Singur Krishi Jomi Raksha Committee camp at Gopalnagar Bospara were later detected.
The blast was triggered around 3:30 a.m. Officers of the bomb squad of the state police rushed to the spot and unearthed the high-intensity charges which were believed to have been planted to blow up the boundary wall. Police are still not sure of the brain behind the act.
"We are probing the matter. Nothing can be disclosed at this point of time," Mr Anuj Sharma, DIG (Burdwan range), said. No one has been arrested in this connection.
A senior police officer said that policemen posted at the project site had heard the sound of an explosion coming from the Gopalnagar Bospara-end of the boundary wall early today. They reached the spot to find a portion of the wall damaged. The blast was triggered a few yards off a Singur Krishi Jomi Raksha Committee camp.
Senior officers were later informed of the explosion and a search was eventually mounted. Policemen found six iron pipes packed with explosives in six different drainage outlets of the boundary wall. The objects were later defused.
The incident sparked off tension and rumours of Maoist insurgents planting mines at the project site spread. Officers of the bomb squad said the entire boundary wall would have collapsed had all explosives been detonated at one go. Mr Partha Chattopadhyay, Leader of the Opposition, alleged that CPI-M supporters and policemen had planted the explosives to divert the people's attention from the "genocide" at Nandigram. "The area has been under a strong security cover for the past couple of months. It is not possible for outsiders to sneak in to wreak havoc," Mr Chattopadhyay said.
posted by Resistance 3/19/2007 09:04:00 AM,
