New Delhi, May 16 (IANS): The security agencies have been investigating the Katra bus fire incident from the terror angle also, sources in the intelligence grid said here on Monday.
A bus carrying pilgrims heading to Mata Vaishno Devi shrine caught fire on May 14 which claimed the lives of four passengers while injuring several others.
Sources said that the way the bus caught fire and within minutes it spread in the whole vehicle indicates that explosives might have used such as sticky or sticker bomb.
However, they also said that the sticky bomb is placed on the outer part of a vehicle as happened in the case of an Israeli embassy car in February 2012 in Delhi. Barring the New Delhi incident, so far the sticker bomb technique has not been used by any of the India-based terror modules but it cannot be ruled out, they added.
The sources, quoting the agencies probing the fire incident, said the way the bus was damaged and caught fire within a few minutes is not normal. If the vehicle caught fire due to an electrical fault, it would have taken time to engulf the entire bus. This type of fire occurs in the CNG fitted vehicles, they added.
The investigation agencies are waiting for the forensic report which will reveal the components used in the blast.
The Explosive Expert Unit of the National Investigation Agency (NIA) visited the spot just after the incident took place and conducted a preliminary probe. The NIA team also collected samples from the site where the bus stopped after it caught fire. "The NIA team has been examining the samples collected to ascertain which chemical or substance has been used for explosives and will reveal some clues," the officials said.
It is being said that in view of the terror angle now emerging, the agencies have once again reached the spot, along with their forensic teams and are looking for more evidence.
The officials said that the responsibility for the incident was claimed by a lesser known outfit 'Jammu and Kashmir Freedom Fighters' which is presumed to be an offshoot of the Jaish-e-Muhammad. Officials in the security grid of Jammu and Kashmir said that in view of the Amarnath Yatra, the security forces don't want to take any chances and if it had been a sticker bomb, then it would be a major security challenge for the security apparatus in J&K.