Main Suspects for "7/11" Deny Involvement

MUMBAI (Reuters) - India pointed the finger at Pakistan-based militant group Lashkar-e-Taiba on Thursday as the prime suspect for coordinated bombings in the country's largest city, as police said they had detained about 20 people.

Investigators have also prepared sketches of three suspects seen at the sites of the bomb attacks, which killed 186 people and wounded more than 700.

"So far it looks like there was a substantial involvement of Lashkar-e-Taiba with local support," D.K. Shankaran, the most senior bureaucrat in Maharashtra state government, told Reuters.

Lashkar, or LeT, has long operated in Indian-ruled
Kashmir, but is believed to have expanded its area of operations recently.

It was blamed for bomb attacks on markets in New Delhi in October that killed more than 60 people, as well as bombs in the holy Hindu city of Varanasi in March that killed 15 people.

Lashkar was also held partly responsible for a 2001 attack on the parliament in New Delhi that brought India and Pakistan to the brink of war.

"We cannot put the blame on any particular group right now, but we have some indication because this attack looks similar to LeT's earlier attacks," said K.P. Raghuvanshi, anti-terrorism squad chief.

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Lashkar has denied any role in what it called "inhuman and barbaric acts."

The bombs were left on luggage racks in the crowded compartments, officials said. Shankaran said it appeared that RDX, a highly powerful plastic explosive, had been used to cause at least two of the seven blasts. Police said electrical timers could have been used to set off the explosions.