A Scar Is Born

According to the police the Mumbai module was set up to take revenge on the many Gujarati businessmen based in the city who had contributed to the BJP election campaign. The blasts since Dec 2002 have taken place in Gujarati-dominated areas of the city.

The police first took notice of the GMRF when an e-mail from the outfit was recovered from some of those arrested in connection with the Ghatkopar bus blast on July 28 which killed three people. "We have also heard that TV channels received calls from the group claiming responsibility for the twin blasts," says joint commissioner Satyapal Singh.

The causal links between these activities and the Gujarat riots is, at best, blurred.During the post-Godhra phase, Ashrat was in Surat which was fairly peaceful. But he told interrogators that he had met several Muslims who were devastated by the violence. Sayyed Mohammad Hanif, one of the four arrested, had seen gory TV visuals of the riot while in Dubai.

The four arrested GMRF members may yet yield information about its activities and possible linkages with other modules.