India's major cities were put on high alert on Sunday, with fears of more attacks after at least 46 people were killed in two days of bombings that hit a communally sensitive western city and a southern IT hub At least 16 bombs exploded in Ahmedabad city in Gujarat state on Saturday, killing at least 45 people and wounding 161, a day after another set of blasts in Bangalore killed a woman. Two more unexploded bombs were found in the city of Surat on Sunday, one of the world's biggest diamond-polishing centers, located in Gujarat state, police said. A little-known group called the Indian Mujahideen claimed responsibility for the Ahmedabad attacks on Saturday. The group said it had carried out bomb attacks that killed 63 people in the western city of Jaipur in May. “Do whatever you can, within 5 minutes from now, feel the terror of death!” said an e-mail from the group sent to several Indian television stations minutes before the Ahmedabad blasts began. The e-mail's subject line said “Await 5 minutes for the revenge of Gujarat,” an apparent reference to 2002 riots in the western state which left 1,000 people, mostly Muslims, dead. It is unusual for any group to claim responsibility, but India says it suspects militant groups from Pakistan and Bangladesh are behind a wave of bombings in recent years. Ahmedabad police commissioner, O.P. Mathur, said they have detained 30 people in their investigation Near India's financial capital Mumbai, police carried out a raid on a house where they believe the email originated from. “The entire nation, including major metro cities in India, have been put on high alert and they have been asked to step up security in vital installations,” a home ministry spokesman said. President Pratibha Patil urged people to “remain steadfast in this testing time and maintain peace and harmony.” Prime Minister Manmohan Singh also urged people to maintain communal harmony. In New Delhi, police used loudspeakers and distributed leaflets in crowded market places, warning people to watch out for unclaimed baggage and suspicious objects. Police guarded Hindu temples in the eastern city of Kolkata. Ahmedabad and Bangalore are in states ruled by the Hindu-nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party. “Terrorists are waging a war against India,” said Gujarat's Chief Minister Narendra Modi. “We should be prepared for a long battle against terrorism.” Modi is accused of deliberately failing to protect Muslims in the 2002 Gujarat riots.
