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Blasts Fail to Deter Opposition Rally in India Blasts Fail to Deter Opposition Rally in India
(about 2 hours later)
NEW DELHI — A series of low-intensity bombs exploded Sunday in the northeastern Indian city of Patna, targeting a rally featuring the opposition leader Narendra Modi, whose Bharatiya Janata Party hopes to unseat the long-dominant Congress party in national elections next spring.NEW DELHI — A series of low-intensity bombs exploded Sunday in the northeastern Indian city of Patna, targeting a rally featuring the opposition leader Narendra Modi, whose Bharatiya Janata Party hopes to unseat the long-dominant Congress party in national elections next spring.
Small blasts were reported at a Patna train station and at the Gandhi Maidan, an open area where tens of thousands were gathering to hear Mr. Modi speak. The police said around 20 people were wounded, according to the NDTV television channel. Small blasts were reported at a Patna railway station and at the Gandhi Maidan, where tens of thousands were gathering to hear Mr. Modi speak. Five people were killed and 71 hospitalized, including four who are in critical condition, according to Amarkant Jha, superintendent of Patna Medical College and Hospital.
Party officials had touted the rally as the largest ever to be held in the state of Bihar, a high-stakes electoral battleground, and decided to proceed despite the blasts. The crowd roared in response as Mr. Modi invoked the Hindu epics, asking them to chant battle cries from the Ramayana. By Sunday evening, police said four suspects had been detained, and the site of the rally had been cordoned off to search for devices that might not have detonated.
Party officials had touted the rally as the largest ever to be held in the state of Bihar, a high-stakes electoral battleground, and decided to proceed despite the blasts. The crowd roared in response as Mr. Modi invoked the Hindu epics, asking them to chant traditional battle cries.
He appeared calm and jovial, making no mention of the explosions until the end of his speech, when he asked his supporters to “Go in peace no one should be hurt.”He appeared calm and jovial, making no mention of the explosions until the end of his speech, when he asked his supporters to “Go in peace no one should be hurt.”
The president of Bharatiya Janata Party, Rajnath Singh, urged the crowd to renounce the Congress party. “For more than 55 years the Congress has ruled India,” he said. “They had enough time to make India a great country. They only increased poverty and betrayed the trust of the people.”The president of Bharatiya Janata Party, Rajnath Singh, urged the crowd to renounce the Congress party. “For more than 55 years the Congress has ruled India,” he said. “They had enough time to make India a great country. They only increased poverty and betrayed the trust of the people.”
Bihar, which has more than 40 seats in the lower house of Parliament, will be key if the B.J.P. hopes to win a comfortable majority. The state has a relatively large population of Muslim voters wary of Mr. Modi, a controversial figure who represents an uncompromising strand of his party’s Hindu-nationalist ideology.Bihar, which has more than 40 seats in the lower house of Parliament, will be key if the B.J.P. hopes to win a comfortable majority. The state has a relatively large population of Muslim voters wary of Mr. Modi, a controversial figure who represents an uncompromising strand of his party’s Hindu-nationalist ideology.
The state’s top official, Nitish Kumar, broke off a longtime coalition with the B.J.P. when it became clear that Mr. Modi was the likely prime ministerial candidate. Mr. Modi joked about the tension between the two men, saying that Mr. Kumar was hesitant to be seen eating at the same table with him at a state occasion, and he told him, “You can eat – there are no cameras here.”The state’s top official, Nitish Kumar, broke off a longtime coalition with the B.J.P. when it became clear that Mr. Modi was the likely prime ministerial candidate. Mr. Modi joked about the tension between the two men, saying that Mr. Kumar was hesitant to be seen eating at the same table with him at a state occasion, and he told him, “You can eat – there are no cameras here.”
Mr. Modi’s event on Sunday, punctuated by the dramatic news about the explosions, managed to eclipse a simultaneous event organized by the Congress party near Delhi, featuring the governing coalition’s presumed prime ministerial candidate, Rahul Gandhi. Mr. Modi’s event on Sunday, punctuated by the dramatic news about the explosions, managed to eclipse a simultaneous event organized by the Congress party in Delhi, featuring the governing coalition’s presumed prime ministerial candidate, Rahul Gandhi.
The Indian prime minister, Manmohan Singh, called Mr. Kumar on Sunday, urging him to promptly investigate the Patna blasts and punish those responsible.The Indian prime minister, Manmohan Singh, called Mr. Kumar on Sunday, urging him to promptly investigate the Patna blasts and punish those responsible.

Amarnath Tewary contributed reporting from Patna, India.