The intelligence branch (IB) of the state police is not ruling out the hand of an extremist outfit in manufacturing the parcel bomb that killed a human rights activist-cum-part time crime reporter and injured her husband and teenaged daughter in Howrah two days ago.
If the agency’s belief comes true, it will give a new twist in the case that has still shrouded in deep mystery. Inspecting the blast-site — the house of the victim, Chaitali Santra, at Baksara —- repeatedly, alongwith the forensic experts, the IB officials suspect that the enemies who eliminated her had links with the extremists who are known for their technical skills to build swift-but-lethal item like parcel bombs by using the improvised explosive device. They are not ruling out the possibility of a money transaction for the purpose.
What has surprised the security officers is the style of elimination which is also common among the extremists who adopt similar strategies by triggering explosion at the high value targets from remote places. The only difference in this case was the place where residents are mostly the common people.
An IB official on anonymity said on Friday, “Chaitali’s enemies may have given the task of manufacturing the parcel bomb to such an ultra group to keep themselves above suspicion. Once the item was built, the victim’s enemies collected it paying money to them and sent a man in disguise of a courier guy for its delivery. We hope that the picture will be clear in next few days.”