Three arrested in Madhya Pradesh for Malegaon blasts

Bhopal, Oct 26 (IANS) Maharashtra's Anti-Terror Squad (ATS) has arrested three more people from Madhya Pradesh in connection with the Malegaon blasts, a police official said Sunday.

"The Maharashtra ATS has arrested one person from Bhopal and two from Indore in connection with the Malegaon blasts. However, there is no information linking the RSS (Rashtriya Swamaysewak Sangh) or the VHP (Vishwa Hindu Parishad) or similar organisations with the blasts,' Madhya Pradesh Director General of Police S.K. Raut told IANS.

He denied that the ATS had questioned some political leaders but confirmed that a house in Jabalpur town was searched.

Sadhvi Pragya Chandrapalsingh Thakur alias Purna Chetanandagiri, 38, Shivnarayan Gopal Singh Kalsangra, 36, and Shyam Bhanwarlal Sahu, 42, of the Madhya Pradesh-based Hindu Janjagriti Samiti (HJS) have been remanded to police custody till Nov 3 by a Maharashtra court.

They are accused of planning and executing the Sep 29 blast in the Muslim-dominated town of Malegaon that left five dead, followed by a blast in Modasa twon of Gujarat the same day, in which one person was killed.

The explosions took place during the late evening period of the holy month of Ramadan when thousands of Muslims were breaking fast after evening prayers.