New Delhi: Indians are “duty-bound” to give a very “responsible yet firm answer” to terrorism, Union Minister Piyush Goyal said in the aftermath of the blast that rocked the national capital on late Monday evening.
“We all have to be very conscious about the safety and security of our environments. We have to be very careful about terrorism rearing its head again. There are these last-ditch efforts that these terrorists do to try and show their relevance,” the commerce and industry minister said Tuesday at the 22nd Annual Health Summit organised by the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII).
“We as 140 crore Indians are duty-bound to really give a responsible yet firm answer to such characters.”
Goyal also thanked the doctors at the LNJP Hospital for their urgent care to the injured.
“We had a very difficult day yesterday, yet it is very prophetic that I am meeting medical professionals today…It was the doctors who gave emergency care at the LNJP hospital, where the injured were shifted. The first responders and the critical care service you give are what the nation is very proud of. As a nation, we are all very grateful.”
On Monday night, a blast ripped through a car near the Red Fort, killing nine people and injuring several others. The death toll has gone up to 12 till 5 pm Tuesday. A cab driver, a bus conductor and a shopkeeper were among those who lost their lives.
The Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) handed over the probe to the National Investigation Agency (NIA) after a security review meeting held by Union Home Minister Amit Shah.
Investigators have traced the vehicle to a Pulwama-based doctor, Umar Nabi, establishing a link between the attack and the raids carried out earlier Monday in Faridabad. Nabi is allegedly linked to a terror module linked to the Jaish-e-Mohammad. He is also supposedly linked to the Ansar Ghazwat-ul-Hind, the al-Qaeda wing in Jammu and Kashmir.
The raids found at least 2,500 kg of explosive material, including around 360 kg of highly inflammable substances. Alerts have been sounded in Mumbai, while police chiefs in Haryana, Gujarat and elsewhere have also issued public appeals to the people to be vigilant.
Prime Minister Narendra Narendra Modi, who is on a two-day visit to Bhutan, promised that the “conspirators” will not be spared.
“Today, the entire nation stands with them. All night, I was in contact with the agencies involved in examining this incident. Our agencies will get to the very bottom of this conspiracy. The conspirators behind this will not be spared. All those responsible will be brought to justice,” he said in Thimpu.
In New Delhi, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh promised a “swift and thorough inquiry” into the explosion and assured that the perpetrators will be brought to justice.
(Edited by Insha Jalil Waziri)