Kashmiri Militants Deny Mumbai Train Attacks

Two of the main Muslim militant groups operating in Kashmir today denied involvement in yesterday's train attacks in Mumbai, which killed at least 183 people and injured some 700.

Security sources in India have said the seven synchronised bombings were likely to have been carried out by militants connected to one or more of the dozens of armed Kashmiri separatist groups.

However, a spokesman purporting to be from one of the most prominent groups, Lashkar-e-Taiba, denied any role in the bombings of the crowded trains and train stations which brought devastation to India's financial hub during evening rush hour.

It was unclear how seriously security forces would take the denials.

The investigation was continuing today with police inspecting wrecked carriages for clues. A series of raids had been carried out in the city and wider state, and a senior police officer said this morning they had some "leads".

The apparent denial from Lashkar-e-Taiba came from a man calling himself "Doctor Ghaznavi" who made telephone calls to newspaper offices in Srinagar, the summer capital of Indian Kashmir.

The caller condemned the attacks, describing them as "inhuman and barbaric acts". He went on: "Islam does not permit the killing of innocent people. Blaming LeT for such inhuman acts is an attempt by the Indian security agencies to defame Kashmiri mujahideens."

Another leading Kashmiri group, Hizb-ul-Mujahideen, denounced the bomb attacks as "outrageous", saying it abhorred the killing of civilians. Reuters reported the group's spokesman, Ehsan Elahi, saying from Islamabad: "Attacks on civilians are not part of our manifesto. We never carried out such attacks nor will allow anyone to do so."

Lashkar-e-Taiba has been blamed for several major attacks in India in recent years, including bomb blasts in New Delhi in October last year which killed more than 60 people. The blasts in Mumbai came hours after suspected Islamist militants killed eight people, seven of them tourists, in five grenade attacks in Srinagar.

Kashmir is divided between India and Pakistan and both countries claim the region in full. The nuclear rivals have fought two wars over the Himalayan territory where more than 45,000 people have been killed in the Muslim separatist revolt since 1989. New Delhi accuses Pakistan of helping the insurgency and allowing militant groups to shelter on its territory but Islamabad denies the charge and condemned yesterday's attacks.

This morning in Mumbai, many nervous residents were back using the resumed train service, although some preferred to use the crowded roads.

The cheaper compartments were as busy as usual, with many travellers hanging from the doorways of the crowded carriages. Around 6 million people use the trains every day in the city.

Brijesh Ojha, a 35-year-old security guard, was back today at dawn at the Bandra station, one of the sites of yesterday's blasts, getting ready to board a train that hours earlier he had vowed never to ride again.

"Our trust has been shattered, we had always thought trains were safe," said Mr Ojha, who, along with thousands of others, spent last night pulling bloodied bodies from the twisted wreckage.

"But what can we do - in this city, trains are the lifeline," said Mr Ojha, the Associated Press reported.

Some passengers praised the spirit of the residents of the city of 16 million in a time of crisis.

Deepa Kumar, who commutes more than an hour each way to her office in the city centre, said people from all walks of life - from the city's wealthy elite to its poor shanty dwellers - reached out to help each other.

"Complete strangers were carrying the injured in their cars, not minding that their fancy leather car seats were getting bloodied," she said. "It's at times like this that I believe this city shows it has a heart."