US embassy cable - 05NEWDELHI3846

S E C R E T SECTION 01 OF 03 NEW DELHI 003846 
 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 05/23/2015 
TAGS: PTER, ASEC, OVIP, PREL, IN, PK, Counter-Terrorism 
SUBJECT: SUSPECTS ABOUND IN TWIN DELHI CINEMA BOMB BLASTS 
 
Classified By: Charge Robert O. Blake, Jr., for Reasons 1.4 (B, D) 
 
1.  (C) Summary: No person or group has yet claimed 
responsibility for the explosions in two New Delhi movie 
theaters on May 22 that killed one person and injured at 
least 50.  Both cinemas, located in neighborhoods with large 
Sikh populations, were screening the controversial detective 
film "Jo Bole So Nihaal" ("Praise the Name of the Lord") 
which Sikh leaders have criticized as denigrating their 
religion.   Although Delhi is now under "high alert" and many 
movie houses have pulled the film as a precaution, the city 
has been otherwise unaffected and the New Delhi police advise 
us there is no connection between the bombings and US 
interests.  Our law enforcement contacts are not sharing 
their insights on who they believe is behind the attacks, 
explaining that investigation is only in its initial stages. 
LEGATT has offered FBI technical assistance with the 
investigation, which press indicates may have employed RDX 
explosives.  Speculation among our CT contacts and in the 
press on who committed these attacks runs the gamut from Sikh 
extremists to Lashkar-e-Tayyiba (LeT) to Pakistani 
intelligence.  Meanwhile, police are investigating other 
leads that may point to a terrorism link, including the 
arrest of a self-described LeT cadre reportedly in possession 
of RDX and the planting of a third, very small, bomb.  End 
Summary. 
 
2.  (SBU) According to law enforcement spokespeople, the 
first bomb exploded under a seat at Liberty Cinema at 8:15 PM 
on May 22, shortly after the audience re-entered the theater 
after an intermission.  The explosion damaged the theater's 
false ceiling and set off a panic among the patrons.  About 
20 minutes later, a second bomb detonated in the ladies' 
lavatory in Satyam Cinema in Patel Nagar, which also damaged 
an adjoining restaurant.  As of the afternoon of May 24, 
Indian press reported the toll as one person killed and at 
least 50 injured, mostly from the Liberty Cinema bombing. 
Both theaters are located in neighborhoods with large Sikh 
populations, and both were showing the film "Jo Bole So 
Nihaal," which Sikh leaders have loudly criticized as 
demeaning their religion.  Many (but reportedly not all) 
theaters across India have stopped showing this film, which 
tells the story of a crime investigation that goes from 
Punjab to New York City.  No person or group has claimed 
responsibility for the blasts, which Defense Minister Pranab 
Mukherjee said "appeared to be the handiwork of terrorists." 
 
Delhi on Alert, Targets Appear to be Specific 
--------------------------------------------- 
 
3.  (C) The Cabinet reportedly convened an emergency meeting 
shortly after the blasts to review security arrangements in 
the capital.  Minister of State for Home Affairs Shriprakash 
Jaiswal announced that Delhi was under a "high alert," and 
that security was tightened at the city's exits. 
 
4.  (S) RSO reports that the bombings, which appear to have 
been specifically aimed at their targets, have not directly 
affected Mission security.  RSO is maintaining close contact 
with the Delhi police the Intelligence Bureau (IB), and is 
coordinating with US Secret Service regarding F/POTUS 
Clinton's New Delhi visit, which begins May 25.  New Delhi 
police advise that, according to the information they 
currently have, there is no nexus between the bombings and 
the Embassy or US interests. 
 
Investigation Just Beginning; FBI Offers Technical Help 
--------------------------------------------- ---------- 
 
5.  (C) Delhi Police Commissioner KK Paul told reporters that 
the bombs were "crude" and did not contain fragmentation 
materials that could have caused greater injuries; he did not 
offer further details, and official forensics reports have 
not been released.  Paul told RSO late on May 23 that the 
investigation is continuing and the Special Cell of the Delhi 
Police Force had not yet attributed the attacks to any person 
or group.  Deputy Police Commissioner Anita Roy, who is 
responsible for the diplomatic zone, confirmed to RSO on May 
24 that the investigation has not yet identified the bombers 
or made any links to terrorist groups.  A LEGATT inquiry to 
the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has also yielded no 
more detailed information; LEGATT awaits CBI's response to an 
offer of FBI technical assistance. 
 
Suspects Abound - Pakistan Link? 
-------------------------------- 
 
6.  (SBU) Indian media speculation initially pointed to Sikh 
radicals carrying out these attacks.  Sikh leaders have been 
critical of the film "Jo Bole So Nihaal" for its 
inappropriate use of Sikh religious language and symbols. 
The highest Sikh religious body, the Shiromani Gurdwara 
Parbandhak Committee (SGPC), successfully lobbied for the 
film to be recalled from theaters in Punjab prior to the 
bombings.  After the explosions, the SGPC publicly condemned 
the attacks as "inhuman." 
 
7.  (C) A second line of press analysis holds 
Lashkar-e-Tayyiba (LeT) responsible for the blasts.  The May 
23 arrest in Delhi of a young man allegedly possessing more 
than five kilograms of RDX -- who reportedly claimed to be a 
Pakistan-trained LeT terrorist -- lent fuel to this theory, 
although police have not publicly linked him to the bombings 
and have not announced whether RDX was used.  Noted Indian 
terrorism expert Dr. Ajai Sahni pointed out to Poloff that, 
although it is too soon to ascribe certainty to any theory, 
it is plausible that LeT leadership might have considered an 
attack in the middle of a Sikh controversy as "a target of 
opportunity to inflame sectarian or communal tensions in 
India."  He echoed speculation in the "Times of India" that 
this could have been a reactivating of a "Khalistan (Sikh 
separatist)-Islamist-Kashmiri link" that has existed, if 
largely dormant, since the 1980s.  That said, one police 
contact commented to RSO that the Sikh connection was more 
likely than a connection to LeT. 
 
8.  (C) Not all theories point to the bombings being a 
politically motivated act.  Punjab-based "Daily Ajit" Bureau 
Chief Herkewaljit Singh told us that he thought the attacks 
were not carried out by an organized group, but by aggrieved 
Sikh individuals who planted the bombs in response to their 
anger over the movie's religious mischaracterizations.  The 
film's title comes from a line in Sikh scripture which, the 
SGPC and other Sikh critics maintain, should only be uttered 
in prayer or in battle. 
 
9.  (C) Whether the bombs were placed by Sikh radicals, 
jihadis, or individuals/groups not yet named, some Indian 
sources accuse Pakistan's Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) 
of playing a role.  Punjab-based editor and managing trustee 
of the Press Trust of India wire service Avinash Chopra, who 
lost his father and brother to Sikh terrorists in the 1980s, 
told us that he is "convinced" that the bombings represent a 
resurgent ISI-Khalistan nexus.  An unidentified senior Delhi 
police officer "who is heading the investigation" told 
reporters that "this is the handiwork of ISI working with 
some terrorists," and claimed that the attackers were 
targeting "any crowded places" and not the film itself. 
 
Police Also Investigating Small Blast 
------------------------------------- 
 
10.  (SBU) At about 6 AM on May 23, one man in the Nand Nagri 
area of Delhi was injured after he picked up a wallet rigged 
with an explosive.  Paul told reporters that forensics 
experts were investigating whether this was related to the 
movie hall attacks. 
 
Comment 
------- 
 
11.  (C) Indian law enforcement officials are holding their 
cards close to their chests during this unfolding 
investigation, and the Home Ministry's refusal to engage with 
the Embassy locks us out of knowing where the GOI 
investigation is going.  Meanwhile, the rumor mill has been 
working full steam.  Presumably, a cessation in attacks now 
would strengthen the theory that the bombings are linked to 
Sikh extremism, either organized or ad hoc, while a 
continuation would bolster the theory of a jihadi connection. 
 A determination of ISI involvement would constitute a 
significant escalation of Pakistani support for terrorism in 
India and would place the Indo-Pak peace process under 
considerable stress, but there is no clear evidence to 
support such a determination.  Embassy will follow up to seek 
more information. 
BLAKE