NEW DELHI, Sept 19 � In incidents apparently intended to cause terror ahead of Commonwealth Games, two unidentified motorcycle-borne attackers today shot and injured two Taiwanese nationals outside the Jama Masjid here which was followed by a crude pressure cooker bomb blast in a car in the same area, reports PTI.
Delhi Police appeared to be ruling out the role of any organised terror group but intelligence experts said it could be a handiwork of outlawed Indian Mujahideen, which was behind a series of blasts in several cities, including Delhi and Ahmedabad.
The Indian Mujahideen claimed responsibility for the attack in an e-mail sent to PTI and some other news organisations and threatened terror strikes during the Games.
A red alert was sounded across the capital after the incident in which the two bikers, wearing raincoats and helmets, fired 7-8 rounds on the stationary vehicle adjacent to Gate No 3 of the mosque and 100 metres away from the house of Shahi Imam of Jama Masjid Syed Ahmed Bukhari at 11.10 am.
Police have detained one person for questioning in connection with the case.
The two injured � Cesewein (27) and Cinglo (28) � were rushed to the nearby government Lok Nayak Jaiprakash Narayan Hospital, a senior police official said.
Karnal Singh, Joint Commissioner (Northern Range), told reporters that the four cartridges recovered from the spot showed that the weapon used could be .38 calibre revolver.
But the rounds of fire recovered were also of 9 mm, which can be used in pistol or carbine, he said refusing to hazard a guess on the motive of the attackers.
�We are looking into all angles and we cannot jump to conclusions. It appears to be done to create panic,� he said.
�A red alert has been sounded and we are conducting checks at various points. We are confident of nabbing the culprits soon,� he said.
Nearly two hours after the firing incident, a car went up in flames when a �crudely-circuited� pressure cooker bomb exploded about 50 metres away from the spot where the firing incident took place.
Asked whether it is a security scare ahead of the October 3-14 Games, Delhi Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit said, �an incident like this is something worrying but nothing to panic about.�
Union Urban Development Minister S Jaipal Reddy said the incident would not have an impact on the Games.
�Lots of security measures have already been taken. But wherever there is an inadequacy about it, that hole has to be plugged,� the Chief Minister said.
The e-mail sent by the Indian Mujahideen said, �in the name of Allah, the attack is a tribute to Atif Amin and Mohammed Sajid�. Amin and Sajid were IM operatives killed by the police in the Batla House encounter soon after the Delhi serial blasts of September 2008.
�We are warning you. If you have the guts, then organise the Commonwealth Games...We know that preparations are on full swing. Be prepared...We are also making preparations...The participants in the Games will be responsible for the outcome,� the e-mail said.
The modus operandi in the firing carries the signature of Indian Mujaheedin, Home Ministry sources said.
