2nd series of bombings hits Gujarat

AHMEDABAD, India, July 26 (UPI) -- Bombs concealed in tea boxes rocked an Indian city Saturday, killing at least 29 people in the second deadly attack in two days.

The bombings in Ahmedabad were similar to those Friday in Bangalore, The Times of India reported. In both cities, the bombs used explosive ammonium nitrate and were equipped with quartz timers.

Police in Ahmedabad said late Saturday at least 17 bombs had exploded, including several at hospitals. Investigators put the toll at 29 dead and 88 wounded.

Both Ahmedabad and Bangalore are in Gujarat, a state ruled by the Hindu Nationalist BJP. A group using the name Indian Mujahideen claimed responsibility for the Ahmedabad bombs in e-mails sent to television stations.

The nine bombings in Bangalore, the center of India's IT business, were less deadly, claiming two lives and injuring 29.

Ahmedabad was in the center of the 2002 anti-Muslim riots in Gujarat state in which more than 1,000 died. At least four of the bombs Saturday went off in the district represented by Narendra Modi, the chief minister of the state, who was accused in 2002 of doing too little to stop the riots.