Dozens Killed in India Blasts

NEW DELHI —  A series of bomb blasts shook the heart of the Indian capital Saturday evening, killing more than 50 people in crowded marketplaces and a public bus in an apparent coordinated terrorist attack on the eve of a national Hindu holiday.

Three explosions went off within minutes of one another starting about 5:30 p.m., during peak shopping hours. The first hit a busy market across from the central railway station, in an area popular with backpacking tourists. It was closely followed by two more blasts, one aboard a bus in the southeastern part of the city and another -- the most lethal of the three -- in a south Delhi marketplace, where at least 36 people died. Scores more were injured.

Officials refused to speculate on who orchestrated the bombings, but public suspicion immediately fell on Muslim separatist groups based in the disputed Himalayan region of Kashmir.

The last major strike by Kashmiri militants on New Delhi occurred nearly four years ago. The deadly assault on Parliament pushed India and Pakistan, both nuclear powers, to the brink of war. India has accused its neighbor of covertly backing extremists in their violent campaign to unite all of Kashmir with Pakistan or to create an independent state.

Since then, the two rivals have been gradually trying to negotiate a settlement over Kashmir. In April, Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf declared the peace process “irreversible.” Early today, the two nations agreed to open their militarized, de facto border in Kashmir to aid victims of the Oct. 8 earthquake centered in the region.

Indian authorities say five or six major militant Muslim organizations still are based in mountainous Kashmir, as well as several smaller splinter groups. In addition, dozens of other militant organizations of various stripes operate throughout India.

“It’s something that has been planned -- that is quite obvious,” Sheila Dikshit, chief minister of Delhi state, said of the attacks. “But it’s far too early to say anything [about] who it is who was behind it.”

Indian television reported late Saturday that 10 people had been detained.

Singh cut short a visit to Calcutta to rush back to the capital after the bombings.

“I condemn the cynical and premeditated attacks on innocent people. These are dastardly acts of terrorism aimed at the people of our country,” Singh said. “We are resolute in our commitment to fighting terror in all forms.”

In Islamabad, Pakistani Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Tasnim Aslam called the attack “a criminal act of terrorism. The people and government of Pakistan are shocked at this barbaric act and express deep sympathy with the families of the victims.”

Both India and Pakistan are struggling to care for victims of the catastrophic earthquake, and talks on coordinating the relief effort have raised hope that peace talks might receive a boost.

Negotiations to open crossings along the cease-fire line began in Islamabad on Saturday and ended early today with an agreement to establish passages at several points along the Line of Control.

Analysts worry that the bombings could harden relations between the two sides if Muslim militants believed to enjoy Pakistan’s support are deemed responsible.

The symbolism of the bomb blasts’ timing seemed clear, coming three days before the Hindu festival of Diwali, a time when New Delhi’s congested streets and bustling markets are even more packed than usual. Residents string their homes with colored lights and set off firecrackers in the evenings in the run-up to the holiday. Later this week, Muslims celebrate Eid al-Fitr, marking the end of the holy month of Ramadan.

As dusk fell Saturday, the open-air Paharganj market was chockablock with last-minute shoppers buying vegetables and stocking up for Diwali at the many stores and sidewalk stalls. About 5:30 p.m., a thunderous explosion shattered the air of cheerful activity.

“I thought the building was collapsing, so I ran out into the middle of the street,” said shopkeeper Harvinder Singh, 34. “There was smoke all around. Initially I thought there had been a short circuit on the electricity pole. But then I saw the hands of children and young women raining down from the sky.”

Debris, broken glass and merchandise lay strewn in the narrow streets. Signboards were blackened. Some frantic bystanders fled, while others swiftly cleared off wooden carts to use as makeshift stretchers to wheel away the injured.

The market, across from the entrance to Delhi’s main train station, is home to a passel of budget hostels frequented by backpackers. Preliminary reports indicated that no foreigners were among those killed in any of the blasts. The exact number of dead in each of the explosions remained unclear early today.

Police Commissioner K.K. Paul said the Paharganj bomb might have been planted on a motorcycle or scooter in the market square.

Within half an hour of the first blast, bombs struck a bus in the Govindpuri neighborhood and the market of Sarojini Nagar, one of south Delhi’s most popular shopping spots.

News channel NDTV reported that the driver of the bus spotted an unattended bag on board and had evacuated most of the passengers when the bomb went off. Several people were injured, including the driver.

In Sarojini Nagar, clothing store owner Vikas Kaistha had just quaffed a cool drink from a food stall and was walking toward the public toilet when a blast ripped through the spot where he had been standing moments before.

“Our ears went numb -- we couldn’t hear. The market shook,” said Kaistha, 32. “It was silent for one or two minutes, and after that, ladies were screaming, children were screaming.”

Victims’ clothes were torn off by the force of the explosion. Flames engulfed the area, setting ablaze tanks of propane used by vendors to cook roadside snacks. It was not known whether any exploded, compounding the damage, but authorities said that at least three dozen people, including a number of children, were killed in Sarojini Nagar.

“There was complete chaos,” said Sadana Shyam, 55. “People started running helter-skelter.”

Kaistha said that last year, public announcements warned merchants in Sarojini Nagar to exercise vigilance during the busy Diwali shopping season, but no such admonitions were broadcast this year.

As word of the blasts quickly spread through New Delhi, officials appealed to residents to stay home and avoid crowded places. Police went on high alert and ordered other marketplaces to close down. Security was beefed up at bus and railway depots throughout India.

The death toll in the bombings far exceeded that of the December 2001 assault on Parliament, which was blamed on the Pakistan-based militant groups Lashkar-e-Taiba, or Army of the Pure, and Jaish-e-Muhammad. Thirteen people, including five gunmen, were slain in that attack, which came close to precipitating a fourth war between India and Pakistan.

Fueling speculation that Kashmiri militants were behind Saturday’s bombings was the 58th anniversary Thursday of what separatist groups call Black Day, when Indian forces moved into the then-independent territory of Jammu and Kashmir to battle tribesmen invading from Pakistan.

Also, Saturday was the scheduled sentencing day for a member of Lashkar-e-Taiba found guilty of participating in a raid on Delhi’s historic Red Fort five years ago, which killed three Indian soldiers. The sentencing was deferred.

If the bombings are determined to be the work of Kashmiri militants, Indo-Pakistani relations would suffer a blow but would probably not deteriorate to the point they reached after the 2001 attack on Parliament, analysts said.

“If this is definitively linked to a Pakistan-backed group, there will certainly be a hardening of India’s stand, but it won’t be a breakdown [of ties] or anything like that,” said Ajai Sahni, an expert on terrorism here. “A greater measure of realism will inform India’s approach to Pakistan.”

The two rivals have maintained contact since the earthquake, even though militant attacks have continued, including the assassination in broad daylight of the education minister of India’s Jammu and Kashmir state.

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Times staff writer Paul Watson in Islamabad contributed to this report.