9 killed as militants trigger car-bomb at Army HQ

By Shujaat Bukhari

SRINAGAR, DEC. 25. In a devastating car-bomb explosion outside the highly-guarded 15 Corps headquarters here, at least nine persons, including five Army soldiers, were killed and 25 others injured. A shopping complex also caught fire after the explosion and a number of shops were gutted.

Police sources said a Maruti car was left just outside the gate of the headquarters by unidentified militants and soon the bomb which was fitted in the car was triggered by them. The car was blown to pieces and the Armymen, who were part of the checking squad at the gate, bore the brunt of the blast. The troops panicked and opened fire.

A Defence spokesperson said seven Army men were wounded and two civilians died. It was, however, not known whether the civilians died due to the blast or the Army firing.

(According to PTI, the suicide-bomber drove the car, bearing a Delhi registration number and stuffed with explosives, to the headquarters of the 15 Corps at about 2.20 p.m. and blew it up at Batwara in front of the main gate. Sources said the suicide- bomber, who tried to storm the headquarters, was stopped by military police personnel at the checkpoint near the main gate. But ignoring the signal, the bomber went ahead and blew up.)

The nearby shopping complex also caught fire after the incident and a number of shops were gutted. A large number of people were present in the market in front of the 15 Corps headquarters shopping for Eid-ul-Fitr.

The entire area was sealed off by the Army and the movement of civilians curtailed. Senior police officials reached the spot and the remains of the damaged car were being examined. However, mediapersons were not allowed into the area.

Two outfits own up

Two militant outfits claimed responsibility for the blast. A spokesperson of the pro-Pakistan Jamait-ul-Mujahideen called newspaper offices here and said since the ``security forces have not implemented the ceasefire and are continuing with crackdowns and search operations'' such an action was resorted to.

Later, the Jaish-e-Mohammad, too, owned up the attack. A spokesperson said it was a Jaish suicide-bomber, Abdullah Bai, of Birmingham, England, who drove the car and blasted it.

Peace process will continue: Fernandes

The Defence Minister, Mr. George Fernandes, said the car-bomb explosion was aimed at sabotaging the ongoing peace process in the State.

Mr. Fernandes, who was in Srinagar on a brief visit, however, said it will not have any effect on the ceasefire. But the militants responsible will not go scot-free. The Defence Minister denied that there was any security lapse involved in today's blast.

On the recent attack at the Red Fort, he said if Pakistan stopped ``cross-border terrorism'' these incidents would not occur.

Though nothing was known about the exact purpose of Mr. Fernandes's `Srinagar mission', he visited the Hindustan Machine Tools factory at Shalteng and interacted with the workers there. He also met a group of children sent by the Army on an all-India tour.

The Minister reviewed the latest situation with the officiating Corps Commander, Maj.-Gen. Basant Singh, at the airport. No State Minister or senior official was present at the airport either to receive the Defence Minister or to see him off.

Fort attack won't hit ceasefire: PM

NEW DELHI, DEC. 25. The Prime Minister, Mr. Atal Behari Vajpayee, today said there has been a security lapse in the Red Fort which was stormed by Kashmiri militants on Friday and measures were being taken to avoid recurrence of such events.

``There has been a security lapse at the Red Fort and measures are being taken so that it is not repeated,`` he told ANI.

Asked whether the incident would have any effect on the ongoing ceasefire in Jammu and Kashmir, he was optimistic, saying ``it won't''.

- PTI

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