Three days after a terror plot to possibly attack Delhi during Diwali was foiled in Ambala, a huge cache of explosives including 5,000 detonators and 10 boxes of gelatine sticks was today seized by the police from a house here.
The police action in Madhya Pradesh came on a tip-off provided by local people about some "suspicious" goods being loaded in a car from the house in New Gangotri Colony. A senior Union home ministry official said in Delhi that two persons have been arrested in connection with the seizure. He said the recovered items appeared to be for the purpose of illegal mining and ruled out a terror angle.
Home Secretary R K Singh spoke to Chief Secretary and DGP and sought a detailed report. Giving details of the incident, police said that by the time its team arrived on the spot, the car had already left the place after which all police stations in the district were put on alert.
The car was later intercepted by a policeman from the Raipur Kalchurian police station, about 15 km from here. The explosive material was recovered from the vehicle and car driver Manoj Kol was taken into police custody for interrogation, in-charge of university police station R K Singh told PTI.
The police later broke open the house and recovered a huge quantity of explosive material which included 30 coils of wire. According to police, the car belongs to a person Rajesh Patel of Naini town in Uttar Pradesh, who had taken the house on rent just a couple of days back.
The police suspect Patel was present in the car, but apparently escaped on seeing the constables. A case under various sections of the IPC has been registered and further probe is on, Additional Superintendent of Police R S Belvanshi said.
On October 13, police recovered over five kg of explosives from a car parked outside the Ambala Cantt railway station.