Daily Times

LAHORE: The identification of the explosive material or the actual reason behind the DHA blast has proven the negligence and failure of the police, Punjab Forensic Science Authority, bomb disposal squad, CTD and other agencies who could not even decide whether it was a terrorist activity or an accident.

The government officials, hospital administration and other members of different law enforcement agencies created confusion through their misinformation in front of the media all day long. The law enforcers did not allow the media or other persons to monitor and visit the “crime scene” in the name of security and investigation procedure.

A number of locals and senior citizens told Daily Times that severe panic and terror gripped the area, as no one from the government, including police, CTD, BDS, forensic laboratory briefed the public on the actual nature of the blast. They added that local people and traders of DHA, Gulberg and its surrounding areas got frightened after assuming it was another terrorist attack, and were bound to close their shops, schools and markets, and locked them inside houses along with their family members in a state of confusion.

They also criticised the government by saying that the slogans of good governance, performance and efficiency had been “proven” after this tragic incident. They said that the government officials concerned remained incompetent, as they did not find the actual cause of this incident despite passage of several hours.

They said that the officials said in the media that it was a car bomb blast, a remote controlled blast and a planted bomb that went off, while some even said that the terrorists had adopted a new strategy, as some explosive material found at the site was “actually dynamite”. They said that the officials concerned also claimed that around 17 to 22 kilogrammes of explosive material has been used in this terrorist activity.

The citizens said that later they were shocked to hear that the CTD officials had completed their investigation procedure and announced that it was not a bomb blast but the incident occurred due to gas leakage. They further said that under the prevailing circumstances, such authorities/departments should show serious professionalism and expertise rather than changing their statements time and again. They also demanded the government to further train forensic officials as well as other investigation teams, as this could help in the future.