The blasts raised questions about the law and order situation and the effectiveness of the intelligence system in Punjab.

Two bomb blasts in Jalandhar and Amritsar within a span of four hours have raised questions about the law and order situation and the effectiveness of the intelligence apparatus in Punjab. The bomb blast in Jalandhar took place outside the Punjab Frontier Headquarters of the BSF, while an attempt was made to blow up the wall of the Army cantonment in Amritsar. Although no one was injured in either blast, the manner in which these incidents were carried out was bound to create a sensation. However, this is the third time in a fortnight that the intelligence apparatus has failed to provide the necessary clues to prevent such blasts. It is worth mentioning that on April 27, a person who planted the bomb was killed while trying to blow up the railway track of the Amritsar-Mumbai freight corridor between Shambhu and Rajpura stations in Patiala district.

Even though the Punjab Police had claimed to have solved the case within just 12 hours and arrested the four conspirators involved in it, their failure to stop such acts has continuously raised doubts about the veracity of these claims. These doubts, which were reinforced in the minds of the people by the blasts in Jalandhar-Amritsar, cannot be called an unnatural reaction in any way.

Jalandhar's BSF headquarters is located on the Delhi-Amritsar National Highway (Sher Shah Suri Marg). There is a good deal of traffic here at 8 pm. Those who chose that time for the blast had the intention of causing massive casualties. Some media reports say that the blast was caused by a bomb placed in the Activa scooter of a delivery worker of a wholesale firm and some others say that the bomb was placed in a garbage bin (drum) near the scooter.

Such a scam, while indicating a lack of professional approach, is also a sign of the absence of ultra-modern methods of investigation, especially forensic scrutiny. Unlike Jalandhar, the Amritsar blast took place at 11 pm on Tuesday night along the perimeter wall of the army cantonment on Khasa Road. This damaged the tin sheets on the wall and also broke the windows of some nearby buildings. Punjab Police Director General Gaurav Yadav has termed both these blasts as a 'Pakistani conspiracy' to disrupt the celebrations related to the anniversary of 'Operation Sindhur'.

They have also expressed their determination to nab the perpetrators of both the new bombings as soon as possible, citing previous 'successes'. Such assurances are right in their place, but they do not answer the question of why adequate arrangements were not made to keep the anniversary of 'Operation Sindhur' auspicious?

In this context, an irony is that the police chief is calling the bomb blasts a Pakistani conspiracy, but on the other hand, Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann is blaming the BJP government at the center for them. He says that the Modi government is carrying out bomb blasts to defame the AAP government in Punjab. Contrary to such statements, all the opposition parties in Punjab are directly targeting the Bhagwant Mann government.

Every opposition leader is complaining that the Mann government has 'failed' to maintain law and order; on the basis of such circumstances, demands are also being raised to 'sack' it. Allegations of misuse of police to implicate opposition leaders in 'false cases' are also being levelled against the Mann government. We are of the opinion that political parties should refrain from such accusations.

Although there is no pro-Khalistan movement in Punjab now, efforts to revive it are being made continuously by Pakistan and its allies. To thwart such efforts, social harmony and communal harmony must be maintained at all costs. It is essential that all political parties firmly uphold such a creed. To make such a smooth progress possible, the initiative should be taken by the state government as well as by its opponents.