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PANIPAT: The curse of history returned to haunt Panipat on Sunday night. Over the centuries, India's fate has been thrice decided in bloody battles on the plains of this small town in Haryana.
Now as neighbours India and Pakistan work hesitantly towards building bridges, two explosions turned the Samjhauta Express, a symbol of sharedness for the two countries, into an inferno about 10 km from here, leaving 67 dead and 15 injured, four of them battling for life.
The timing is significant. On Tuesday, Pakistan foreign minister Khurshid M Kasuri arrives in New Delhi for talks on the peace process between the two countries.
While Pakistan has stated its greater resolve now to further the process, India recognised that the intent of the blasts was to rip apart the growing understanding or 'samjhauta' between the two sides.
The explosions took place at 11.53 pm on the outskirts of Deewana railway station. Pointman Babulal Meena said gateman Pawan Kumar, who mans gate no. 47, heard the blasts. In a few seconds the Attari-bound train, travelling at 90 kmph, entered Deewana.
Assistant station master Vinod Kumar Gupta said he saw the last two coaches of the train on fire as it hurtled past. "I immediately messaged the driver on our walkie-talkie," he said. The train stopped about 2 km away at gate no. 49, near Siwah village.
Rajendra Prasad, a bus conductor who lives about 100 metres from where the train had stopped, heard the commotion on the track. "I rushed out and saw the last two coaches burning. One of them would not open from inside. Those travelling in that coach were trapped.
The air was filled with the stench of burning bodies. A few passengers emerged from the other burning coach. Some of them just fell down and died in a few minutes. It was hard to tell whether they were men or women," he said.
Of the seven bodies identified so far, three are Pakistani nationals. The hand of Lashkar-e-Taiba is suspected. "One suspect has been detained," railway minister Lalu Prasad said. Bharti Arora, superintendent of police, RPF, said that crude bombs had been used to trigger the low-intensity blasts.
"Suitcases filled with iron pipes containing low-grade explosives, detonators and timers and bottles filled with petrol and kerosene had been smuggled into three coaches," she said. The explosives suspected to be planted at the Old Delhi railway station went off in two coaches.
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I don't understand why we don't take a ruthless stand towards terrorists. We still don't know what will happen to Afzal (the guy who tried to attack out Parliament), thanks to the the vote-bank politics of the current government. They may even recommend to the President that he be pardoned, in spite of the court's deaths sentence.
PANIPAT: The curse of history returned to haunt Panipat on Sunday night. Over the centuries, India's fate has been thrice decided in bloody battles on the plains of this small town in Haryana.
Now as neighbours India and Pakistan work hesitantly towards building bridges, two explosions turned the Samjhauta Express, a symbol of sharedness for the two countries, into an inferno about 10 km from here, leaving 67 dead and 15 injured, four of them battling for life.
The timing is significant. On Tuesday, Pakistan foreign minister Khurshid M Kasuri arrives in New Delhi for talks on the peace process between the two countries.
While Pakistan has stated its greater resolve now to further the process, India recognised that the intent of the blasts was to rip apart the growing understanding or 'samjhauta' between the two sides.
The explosions took place at 11.53 pm on the outskirts of Deewana railway station. Pointman Babulal Meena said gateman Pawan Kumar, who mans gate no. 47, heard the blasts. In a few seconds the Attari-bound train, travelling at 90 kmph, entered Deewana.
Assistant station master Vinod Kumar Gupta said he saw the last two coaches of the train on fire as it hurtled past. "I immediately messaged the driver on our walkie-talkie," he said. The train stopped about 2 km away at gate no. 49, near Siwah village.
Rajendra Prasad, a bus conductor who lives about 100 metres from where the train had stopped, heard the commotion on the track. "I rushed out and saw the last two coaches burning. One of them would not open from inside. Those travelling in that coach were trapped.
The air was filled with the stench of burning bodies. A few passengers emerged from the other burning coach. Some of them just fell down and died in a few minutes. It was hard to tell whether they were men or women," he said.
Of the seven bodies identified so far, three are Pakistani nationals. The hand of Lashkar-e-Taiba is suspected. "One suspect has been detained," railway minister Lalu Prasad said. Bharti Arora, superintendent of police, RPF, said that crude bombs had been used to trigger the low-intensity blasts.
"Suitcases filled with iron pipes containing low-grade explosives, detonators and timers and bottles filled with petrol and kerosene had been smuggled into three coaches," she said. The explosives suspected to be planted at the Old Delhi railway station went off in two coaches.
I don't understand why we don't take a ruthless stand towards terrorists. We still don't know what will happen to Afzal (the guy who tried to attack out Parliament), thanks to the the vote-bank politics of the current government. They may even recommend to the President that he be pardoned, in spite of the court's deaths sentence.
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