Police confirms one killed in bomb attack on Uttar Pradesh minister

Clearing confusion, UP police today admitted that one person was killed in the bomb attack on state minister Nand Gopal Gupta "Nandi" while forensic experts scoured the site for evidence to help investigators crack the case.

The condition of 36-year-old Gupta, who was flown to Lucknow from Allahabad last night, is stable and he is showing signs of improvement, doctors at the Sanjay Gandhi Post Graduate Institute said.

They said Gupta, minister for institutional finance, stamp and judicial tax in the Mayawati government, does not need any surgical intervention. 

"We have registered an FIR under provisions of the IPC and the Arms Act. We have also taken cognisance of the death of Rakesh Malaviya, whose family had alleged that he was killed in the blast," police said. Yesterday, they had claimed that no death had taken place in the attack outside the minister's Allahabad residence and only three persons were injured.

A post-mortem showed the presence of splinters proving Malaviya's presence on the spot yesterday, they said.

"Till last night the body was lying unclaimed in the hospital. When family members brought their complaint to our notice, we investigated and confirmed that Malaviya was killed in the blast," Inspector, Kotwali police station in Allahabad, Ashok Kumar Nigam said.

The minister's personal security officer Sanjay, who was grievously injured in the blast, was today sent to PGI hospital in Lucknow while the condition of injured journalist Vijay Pratap Singh, was stated to be critical and he has been kept on a ventilator, Director of private Jeevan Jyoti hospital A K Bansal told reporters in Allahabad.

Inspector general of police, Allahabad Range, Subesh Kumar Singh, told reporters, "We have got no vital clues so far".

Additional director general of police Brijlal said that no arrests or detentions have been made. The Anti-Terrorist Squad and Special Task Force teams were working on the case. However, police sources said that STF had rounded up nearly 20 people for interrogation.

Replying to questions on the investigations, the ADG said the blast was not triggered by a timer device and there was no similarity with any other case in the state.

To another query about possibility of Naxal hand behind the blast, he said that the modus operandi of the Maoists was different.

"The forensic team today gathered the samples from the site and secured the remains of the scooty in which the explosives are believed to have been planted and sent them to Agra for examination. Anything concrete on the nature of the explosives and other things would be known only after a report is received in a day or two," he said in Lucknow.

The scooty's chassis number was missing and so its owner cannot be traced, the ADG said, adding that it was, however, clear that ammonium nitrate was not used in the blast.

Meanwhile, the Congress has accused the administration of trying to hush up the death of Malaviya.

"I am aghast over the attempts to brush under the carpet the death of Malaviya who was killed in the explosion. Till 11 pm yesterday, no FIR had been registered in connection with his death," Allahabad Congress unit chief Chaudhary Jitendra Nath Singh said.

State home secretary Dipak Kumar said that there was no move to provide Z plus security to Gupta after yesterday's attack nor was his security being reviewed.