NEW DELHI, July 14: India's new government on Wednesday ordered a fresh probe into the 2002 burning to death of 59 Hindus in a train in western Gujarat state, allegedly by a Muslim mob, that triggered deadly religious violence.

Railway Minister Laloo Prasad Yadav - a maverick leader staunchly opposed to Gujarat's ruling Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) - told parliament he was ordering a high-level departmental inquiry into the incident.

Mr Yadav said the committee would probe whether the blaze of Feb 27, 2002 was caused by a short-circuit or by some inflammable material. "People of this country should know what exactly happened on that day at the Godhra railway station," he said.

The inquiry would be completed in three months, he said. Mr Yadav said according to a forensic report, there was evidence the fire was caused by inflammable material inside a compartment.

The finding would contradict an earlier probe by Gujarat police that concluded the train was set alight by a Muslim mob outside the train compartment, killing the Hindus.

The event provoked religious riots in Gujarat in which at least 2,000 people, mostly Muslims, died. The riots were among the worst since India's independence in 1947. Mr Yadav said the forensic report does not suggest that any inflammable substance was thrown into the train coach. -AFP