Mystery shrouds bomb blast at Nilphamari jatra

Police could neither arrest any of the culprits nor the victims, 12 days after the incident.

Some viewers claimed earlier that some unidentified bearded persons hurled two bombs on the stage at about 2 am on January 27 when a female artiste was performing a dance.

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The performer-- Chhaya Rani-- was seriously injured. She sustained burn injury on different parts of her body, they claimed.

Police visited the spot four days after the incident, but by that time, all evidences were removed. Police could not collect any splinter or any other evidence, police said.

They filed a case under the Explosives Act on February 1 but could not trace her out. Some locals claimed that she is under treatment at a Rangpur hospital, others say she is hiding to evade arrest or interrogation.

Talking to this correspondent, some people claimed that the militants had gone there in a microbus but others refuted the claim, saying the road leading to the inaccessible area is not fit for such a vehicle to ply.

Chairman of Golmunda Union Parishad Mominur Rahman told Nilphamari Police Superintendent Abdullah-al-Mamun Chowdhury and newsmen that the function was not a 'Jatra' but a session of folklore song.

He said he had informed Jaldhaka Upazila Nirbahi Officer (UNO) immediately after the incident.

When contacted, the Nilphamari SP rejected the claim that the attackers had gone there in a microbus because the area is inaccessible.

He declined to say anything when asked whether it was an act by Islamist militants.

The matter is being investigated, he said.