Forty days after Maharashtra home minister R.R. Patil announced that the perpetrators of the German Bakery blast in Pune would be arrested soon, the case has seen no headway whatsoever. All promises made by the chief minister and other ministers of state have come to nothing, as nobody directly connected with the blast has been arrested yet.
During the Assembly session, Mr Patil had declared on April 6 that the police had identified the perpetrators behind the February 13 blast in Pune. He added that the police was not rushing to make any arrests, as some of the suspects may smell a rat and flee the country.
The state government appointed Rakesh Maria, who was the joint commissioner of police, crime, when the Pune blast occurred, as the head of the Mumbai ATS, shunting the incumbent K.P. Raghuvanshi to head the state law and order. It was expected that the investigations would accelerate and produce concrete results with Mr Maria taking charge.
“Mr Maria has cracked several blast cases in the past. His latest accomplishment was arresting 20 members of the terror outfit Indian Mujahideen. Initial reports suggested that the Pune German bakery blast could have been the handiwork of the IM, whose founders Riyaz Bhatkal and brother Iqbal are still evading arrest. Since Mr Maria had sources placed for getting information on the IM, it was expected that he would produce results after taking up the post. However, this has not happened so far,” said a senior officer.
Mr Patil, however, has kept insisting that the perpetrators have been identified and are on the verge of being arrested. “Reports on Yasin Bhatkal, a relative of Riyaz Bhatkal, being the mastermind behind the Pune blast did the rounds in April, but Mr Maria denied his involvement. There should have been more clarity in the case by now. But knowing Mr Maria’s modus operandi, he will not disclose anything till he arrests the entire module,” another officer said. Meanwhile, the Pune police, is also in complete disarray. First, there was pressure on the government to transfer Pune police commissioner Satyapal Singh for failing to ensure law and order in the city. Last month, minister of state for home Ramesh Bagwe announced that Dr Singh would be transferred for inaction and being ineffective. However, Mr Patil came to Dr Singh’s rescue and said that no decision was made on Singh’s transfer.
A senior officer with the Pune police said, “What is happening is ridiculous. The police cannot concentrate on bigger investigations
like the blast case with all these controversies getting in the way.”