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Who carried out Jama Masjid attack? Cops have no clue!

Last updated on: September 26, 2010 17:12 IST
Police stand guard outside Jama Masjid after the shooting incident

A week has gone by but the Delhi police are still groping in the dark in the case of suspected terror strikes outside the Jama Masjid in New Delhi, though investigators have spread out across the capital and Uttar Pradesh looking for clues.

The Delhi police have questioned nearly 50 people in connection with the strikes last Sunday, but no concrete headway has been made in the probe. But several teams are in Uttar Pradesh and Mumbai to follow up some links in the case, a senior police official said.

Who carried out Jama Masjid attack? Cops have no clue!

Last updated on: September 26, 2010 17:12 IST
The vehicle, which local media say Taiwanese tourists were travelling, is seen near the shooting spot

On September 19, motorbike-borne men fired on a Taiwanese media crew outside the Jama Masjid while a car caught fire after a "crudely-circuited and poorly assembled" device went off within two hours after the first incident.

The police initially attributed the attack to "disgruntled youths and local criminal gangs", ruling out the involvement of any organised terror outfit.

Who carried out Jama Masjid attack? Cops have no clue!

Last updated on: September 26, 2010 17:12 IST
Police stand guard outside Jama Masjid after the shooting incident

The assertion came despite outlawed terror outfit Indian Mujahideen claiming responsibility for the strikes and warning of more attacks ahead of the Commonwealth Games in an e-mail sent to several media organisations.

However, the next day, the Delhi police took an u-turn, claiming that they cannot rule out a terror angle.

Who carried out Jama Masjid attack? Cops have no clue!

Last updated on: September 26, 2010 17:12 IST
A car that burst into flames is pictured near the scene of the shooting

Last Sunday, the police had maintained that there were no traces of any explosives in the device which they recovered from the car when already a case under Explosives Act had been registered.

However, later it came to light that ammonium nitrate was used in the device which had two timers that had two times -- 11:30 am and 12 noon -- set for explosion. No RDX or detonators were recovered, said the police.

Who carried out Jama Masjid attack? Cops have no clue!

Last updated on: September 26, 2010 17:12 IST
A man removes rickshaws near the car which burst into flames near the scene

Home Minister P Chidambaram last week said, "We have leads but we have to zero in on the particular person who sent it. (There is) nothing in the e-mail itself which directly links it the shooting (near Jama Masjid)."

The only headway investigators could make was tracking the IM e-mail to Borivali in Mumbai's western suburbs. The e-mail was sent using a Tata mobile and it had a SIM purchased by an unidentified youth.

Who carried out Jama Masjid attack? Cops have no clue!

Last updated on: September 26, 2010 17:12 IST
A policeman points out to the bullet mark on the window of a vehicle after the shooting incident

A laptop, which might have been used to attach a PDF file in the e-mail sent by the Indian Mujahideen, was located to a server in Norway. The SIM card was put in a GPS activated mobile phone.

Investigators are also rummaging through unedited TV tapes looking for clues in the suspected terror attacks in Jama Masjid while several teams are crisscrossing small towns in Uttar Pradesh looking for leads.