Advani gets Godhra tragedy date wrong

NEW DELHI: Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader LK on Advani Friday got the date of the Godhra train burning tragedy wrong as he sought to establish a connection beween recent terror attacks in India and number 13.

Advani found it to be "a curious coincidence that starting with the attack on kar sevaks (Hindu volunteers) on board Sabarmati Express at Godhra on Feb 26, 2002, almost every major terror strike in India has happened on the 13th or 26th of the month".

"This year alone, the Jaipur blast took place on May 13, Ahmedabad followed on July 26, Delhi on Sep 13 and now Mumbai on Nov 26."

"It appears the terrorists have made it a pattern to strike on the 13th or 26th of every alternate (sic) month. I wonder whether we will have to resort to numerology rather than firm intelligence to anticipate terror attacks," he said in a written statement.

The remarks came after he visited Mumbai on Thursday night in the aftermath of the deadly terrorist strike there.

However, the fact is, the tragedy at Godhra took place a day later - on Feb 27, 2002. Advani was home minister then.

Moreover, it is yet to be established if the train burning was an act of terrorism.

An inquiry commission set up by the Gujarat government submitted its report this year, saying the act was a pre-planned conspiracy, though it said the conspiracy "appears to be a part of a larger conspiracy to create terror and destabilise the administration".

The burning of a bogey of the Sabarmati Express at Godhra, 140 km from Ahmedabad in Gujarat, claimed 59 lives and sparked communal clashes across the state in which 1,169 people were killed.