The Bangalore police may have scotched the chances of a successful probe by failing to stick to the standard operating procedure while probing Wednesday's blast outside the Bharatiya Janata Party’s office in Bengaluru.
Immediately after the blast, the public rushed to the spot and began dousing the fire, even before the fire brigade had reached the spot.
As per the standard operating procedure, the police should advice the fire brigade about how to leave the crime scene undisturbed while putting out the fire.
But crucial evidence was lost as the fire brigade received no such instruction from the police. To add to the woes of the investigators, the area was cleaned up.
As per procedure, the police should have been the first responder at the spot. They have to ensure that the crime scene remains intact and the evidence is secure. When a fire breaks out in the aftermath of a blast, the police force and the fire brigade have to work in a combined manner.
Initial reports from the forensic laboratory indicate that ammonium nitrate may have been used to assemble the bomb.
Footage from the CCTV cameras at the spot has not yielded any concrete leads and most of the evidence at the blast site has been lost.
A camera at the entrance of the BJP office shows a man parking a bike at the spot and then leaving, but his face is not very clear in the grainy footage.
The other two cameras are of no help at all as one was focused in the opposite direction and the other on a staircase of a house.
The bike originally belonged to the son of a retired telephone operator from Tamil Nadu. It was purchased by a person with forged papers, said police.
