Government suspects foreign link to Pune blasts

The government today said it could not rule out the possibility of involvement of foreign hand in the Pune blast even as it disclosed that an ISI-sponsored ‘Karachi Project’ was on to doctrinate Indian youth into terror.

India also plans to seek access to David Headley, a US national of Pakistani origin now in American custody, by even moving the US court. Home Secretary Gopal K Pillai said there was definitely a Headley link (to Pune blast) since it was very close to Osho Ashram which he had surveyed. It was difficult to believe there was no link with the Headley videos.

He said Headley had spoken of an ISI-sponsored ‘Karachi Project’ to take away Indian youth to Pakistan and indoctrinate them to carry out terror attacks in India.

However, he said the investigations in the Pune case were in “very preliminary stages” and it would be too early to comment. It is well known that organisations like Indian Mujahideen have handlers across the border, Pillai added.

Pillai said the government had some general information before the blast that was duly passed to the Maharashtra government but there was no specific information about terror threat to any particular city.