Mandir murderers from Pak

The terrorists who killed 31 people and injured 73 at Akshardham temple in Gandhinagar have been identified as Pakistanis Mohammed Amjad from Lahore and Hafiz Yaseer from Attock city, police sources said. They could have come to Ahmedabad just two-and-a-half hours before the attack.

The terrorists’ pictures have been released by the Gujarat government. Both were under 20 years of age. No official confirmation of this was, however, available. But the investigating team is working on a lead to ascertain whether these terrorists came to Gujarat just a couple of hours before attacking the temple or whether they deliberately tried to create that impression.

The white Ambassador taxi (registration number GJ1U2234) that brought the terrorists to Akshardham temple has been located and the driver, Raju Thakor, arrested. The anti-terrorist squad claims to have arrested him on the basis of intelligence reports but police sources claim the driver approached the Gujarat police.

Raju Thakor has volunteered information that he picked up the two men from Ahmedabad railway station and dropped them at the Swaminarayan Temple at Akshardham. The driver said he picked up these plain-looking young men from the station at around 3.40 pm.

There were two trains that came in around that time. One was the Jammu-Tawi Express and the other the Howrah Express. The Jammu-Tawi Express was about 20 minutes late. Both trains reached Ahmedabad between 3 pm and 3.12 pm. The taxi driver reportedly told the police that the men asked to be taken to Gandhinagar.

When he asked them where specifically did they want to go in Gandhinagar, the "shorter looking boy" replied "Akshardham." The driver said he told these men that he would charge them Rs. 120 for the trip. The driver said he did not find anything suspicious about them and that they were carrying two bags.

The driver claims he dropped them and went off after being paid and that he did not know these men were terrorists. Some eye-witnesses have claimed that these two terrorists got down from a white Ambassador, immediately jumped a small wall and entered Akshardham from Gate 3. However, the driver said he picked up the men around 3.30 pm and dropped them at Akshardham by 4.15 pm, or latest by 4.30 pm.

Going by this, the investigating team feels that the terrorists had a minimum of 15 to 30 minutes before entering the temple premises and could have taken out their AK-47s and grenades from a green Army-style hold-all during this time.

Two bags were found outside Gate 3 and there was carbon paper in them which was probably used to wrap the hand grenades and AK-47s. However, this is where matters get puzzling. A plastic handbag with a local address (Kamlesh Hosiery, Relief Road) printed on it was found in one of the hold-alls, which could mean that the terrorists went to Relief Road and then came to the railway station and pretended to be travellers.

The police is also working on a lead that one of the terrorists could have entered India over the Kutch border.

Republished from The Asian Age