KARACHI, June 24: A remote-controlled bomb carrying 20 kilos of explosive was timely detected and safely defused at the Jinnah Postgraduate Medical Centre (JPMC), preventing what could have been a massacre in the densely populated locality on Friday, officials said.

They added the target apparently was hundreds of people who converged at a tented mosque, neighbouring the hospital’s staff colony, for Juma prayers every week.

The officials said that a man spotted four youngsters riding two motorbikes after placing some suspicious thing close to the tented mosque early in the morning. He promptly informed hospital officials and the police and bomb disposal unit officials were called in, with the result that the bomb was detected placed between bricks.

“The JPMC administration informed the police and we cordoned off the area and then called the bomb disposal unit,” said Saddar SHO Inspector Shabbir Hussain.

“The unit then confirmed that it was a bomb attached with a remote-controlled device. It was concealed between bricks.”

He added that it’s not a proper mosque but some area people and staff members had made makeshift arrangements for Friday prayers in the absence of an Imambargah on the premises.

Suspicion falls on PN attackers

The Special Investigation Unit (SIU) of police, which has been tasked with investigation of terrorism cases, took over the probe and found several traces to the same group that had carried out assaults on the buses of Pakistan Navy last month.

“According to the information gathered by us, more than 300 people offer prayers here every Friday,” said SP Raja Umer Khattab of the SIU.

“The explosive weighed around 20 kilos and the bomb carried nuts and ball bearings to cause further devastation. It could have caused heavy casualties and also damaged the nearby structure.”

He said the police had prepared the sketches of the four riders who were seen returning after placing the bomb with the help of eyewitness. Video footage of the cameras installed on the entrances of the JPMC had also been acquired, he added.

Reward

Sindh police chief Wajid Durrani announced a Rs100,000 reward for the person who informed the JPMC and police about the suspicious activity and helped foiling the terrorism bid.

He appealed to the Karachiites to inform the police on Madadgar 15 or 021-99212064 if they witnessed any suspicious activity in their areas.

The Saddar police later registered a case (FIR 192/2011) under Sections 7 of the Anti-Terrorism Act, 5 of the Explosive Act and 34 (common intention) of the Pakistan Penal Code on behalf of the state.