The low intensity blasts in Pune last week coincided with the appointment of Sushil Kumar Shinde as the Union Home Minister. But it may not have been a mere coincidence. Shinde was scheduled to visit the city at that time but it was abruptly cancelled following the blasts. Two more explosive devices were defused by the police. The blasts and the proposed visit of the Union Home Minister may of course have been unconnected. But one never knows.
The carelessness of the authorities in Pune may have surprised many though people are accustomed to the country’s lack of concern about internal security. The German bakery blast occurred in Pune only two years ago. Seventeen people were killed in the blast. There was talk of setting up close circuit networks in Pune after the blast and the Mumbai attack on 26/11. But nothing came of it. The police did not have enough CCTV network footage to put it into action. Intelligence on this occasion obviously failed to do the needful when Shinde’s visit was announced. It appears that Pune or Maharashtra for that matter remains unconcerned about the enormity of the Mumbai massacre of 26/11. Sushil Kumar Shinde has said that the Pune blasts are of serious import and are being investigated. The crack force however remains clueless. Sharad Pawar has severely attacked the state Home Minister, RR Patil who also belongs to the NCP. Pawar had ousted him from the hot seat after the 26/11 disaster but for some unaccountable reason had reinstated him. Finally, the reason why the blasts took place when they did needs to be thoroughly looked into.