The Jaipur bombings were a series of nine synchronized bomb blasts that took place on 13 May 2008 within a span of 15 minutes at locations in Jaipur, the capital city of the Indian state of Rajasthan and a tourist destination." Defused bomb in Jaipur had only RDX traces ", Thaindian News, 20 May 2008. Official reports confirmed that 63 died while 216 or more people were injured.Majumdar, Bappa. "Unknown terror group claims responsibility: report", Hindustan Times, 15 May 2008. The bombings shocked most of India and resulted in widespread condemnation from leaders across the world with many countries showing solidarity with India in its fight against terrorism.
This was the first time terrorists had targeted Jaipur,"For the first time in 280 years", The Times of India, 14 May 2008. India's tenth largest city and one of its most popular tourist destinations. The bombs went off near historic monuments at one of the busiest times of the day. One of the bombs exploded close to Jaipur's most famous landmark, the historic Hawa Mahal (palace of winds)."Curfew imposed after India blasts", BBC News, 14 May 2008.
Two days after the blasts, a previously unknown Islamic terrorist group"Unknown Islamic group threatens more blasts in tourist India" , Agence France-Presse, 14 May 2008. known as Indian Mujahideen, sent an e-mail to Indian media in which they claimed responsibility for the attacks"Indian Mujahideen sends pre-blast video footage", India Today, 14 May 2008. and said they would "demolish the faith (Hinduism)" of the "infidels of India"."Outraged India set to expel migrants" , The Australian, 19 May 2008. Though the Indian authorities said that the e-mail was genuine, they also added that there were some contradictions and the primary motive of the e-mail might be to mislead investigating agencies."Jaipur blasts: Terror email genuine", The Times of India, 16 May 2008. Indian Home Ministry sources said that a Bangladesh-based organization, Harkat-ul-Jihad-al-Islami Bangladesh (HuJI) or "Islamic Holy War Movement", was suspected to be behind the attack. The police were also able to find credible evidence linking the suspected bombers to Bangladeshi militants"Bangladeshi Immigrants Stoke Terror in India ", Asia Sentinel, 15 May 2008. which resulted in a backlash against illegal Bangladeshi migrants in Rajasthan."After blasts, Rajasthan govt targets illegal Bangladeshi migrants", The Times of India, 16 May 2008.Loudon, Bruce. "Outraged India set to expel migrants" , The Australian, 19 May 2008.
In December 2019, four (Mohammed Saif, Mohammed Sarwar Azmi, Saifur Rehman and Mohammed Salman) of the five accused Indian Mujahideen terrorists were convicted and sentenced to death by a special court in Rajasthan under the Indian Penal Code, the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, and the Explosives Act, in eight cases registered by the Anti-Terrorism Squad. One of the accused was acquitted for lack of evidence. However, in March 2023, all four were acquitted of the charges by the Rajasthan High Court.
Bombings
The following areas were bombed using RDX placed in bicycles:
Badi Choupad Manak Chowk Police Station area Johari Bazar Tripolia Bazar Choti Choupad Kotwali area
Nine bombs at seven locations exploded within 15 minutes, starting at 7:10 pm. The blasts were synchronized to inflict maximum casualties. The first two blasts occurred at Manak Chowk and as the crowd ran towards Johri Bazar another two blasts near the National Handloom Centre blocked the exit point, pushing back the panicked crowd towards Tripolia Bazar and Chandpol area, where subsequent blasts caused maximum fatalities.Thakur, Pradeep and Ghosh, Avijit. "Jaipur was target in '93 as well", The Times of India, 18 May 2008.
Aftermath The serial blasts created panic among Jaipur residents following which several units of police and Indian Paramilitary Forces were deployed throughout the city. Most of the victims were taken to Sawai Man Singh Hospital. The doctors used the mobile phones of the dead to inform the victims' relatives."Medicos use mobiles of dead to inform their relatives" , The New Indian Express, 15 May 2008. A curfew was imposed in parts of Jaipur and the state government of Rajasthan had ordered all units of police to maintain extra vigilance across the state. The Government of India deployed several units of the elite National Security Guards in Jaipur to aid the law and order forces in the city."Home Ministry sounds nation-wide alert", The Times of India, 13 May 2008. Four hundred men from Rapid Action Force were also sent."Four RAF companies rushed to Jaipur", The Times of India, 14 May 2008. A few hours after the blasts, India declared high alert across several major Indian cities including Delhi, Mumbai (Bombay) and Chennai (Madras). Security in other major Indian tourist destinations like Panaji and Agra was also increased."India on alert, security stepped up", IBN Live, 14 May 2008. Delhi Police also sent a team to Jaipur to check whether the terrorist attacks there had any links with previous terrorists attacks in Delhi."Delhi Police sends team to Jaipur", Press Trust of India, 14 May 2008.
Investigations India ordered an inquiry into the blasts while the Indian Home Ministry raised concerns that certain 'foreign elements' might be behind the bombings. The police has found credible evidence linking the bombing suspects to Bangladesh-based militants.Makkar, Sahil. "Jaipur blast suspects spoke Bengali, bought cycles without bargaining", Hindustan Times, 16 May 2008. Consequently, Rajasthan state government took severe measures against illegal Bangladeshi immigrants in the state.
Four people were detained for questioning by Rajasthan police regarding the blasts. A lead has already been traced by the police."Curfew imposed in Jaipur, 8 detained for questioning", The Times of India, 14 May 2008. Initial police investigations suggested the involvement of several Islamic militant organizations like Bangladesh-based Harkat-ul-Jihad-al-Islami Bangladesh, Student's Islamic Movement of India or Pakistan-based Lashkar-e-Toiba.Sharan, Abhishek. "HuJI, SIMI stamp on attacks ", Hindustan Times, 14 May 2008. Concerns are also being raised about the possible involvement of al-Qaeda."India blast has hallmarks of Al Qaeda", Radio Australia, 14 May 2008.
Police officials say that the bomb blasts in Jaipur follow patterns similar to those observed during the bomb blasts in Hyderabad and Varanasi." Who is behind the India bombings?", BBC News, 14 May 2008. The Indian Police revealed that the bombs planted were of low intensity but by placing them in highly crowded areas, the terrorists had ensured that the death toll would be high.Chu, Henry. "Bombs kill 80 in Indian tourist city", Chicago Tribune, 14 May 2008. The Times of India quoted Additional Director General of Rajasthan Police officer as saying that the terrorists had planted "highly explosive RDX" with timers on bicycles, a technique which was also used during the terror attacks in Uttar Pradesh in November 2007 (in which the involvement of Bangladesh's Harkat-ul-Jihad-al-Islami Bangladesh is also suspected)."Jaipur blasts: RDX used, HuJI suspected", The Times of India, 14 May 2008. The police found striking similarity between the Jaipur bombings and Hyderabad bombings. On 15 May, a police officer said
About 1.5 kg of Neogel with metal ball-bearings was put in boat-shaped wooden cases in Jaipur and Hyderabad. In both cases, timers were used. The similarities in the signatures of the bombs are shocking."Suspects trained at same PoK terror camp", Howrah News Service, 15 May 2008.
Police said they had identified the people who had sold bicycles to the attackers.Vij, Nandita. "Jaipur police suspect Islamist terror link" , France 24, 14 May 2008. The bicycle sellers said that the bombers spoke Bengali language, adding credibility to police claims that the terrorists might be Bangladeshis. A police official said,
The employees [of the bicycle shop] have told us that they did not look like Rajasthanis and spoke in broken Hindi. In fact they were speaking Bengali, which has again given rise to speculation that the militants were from a Bangladeshi outfit.
On 14 May, the Indian police released a sketch of a suspect."Jaipur blasts suspect's sketch released" , NDTV.com, 14 May 2008. A day later, the police released sketches of three additional suspects."Sketches of 4 suspects released", Hindustan Times, 15 May 2008. A shop owner in Udaipur claimed he saw one of the suspects a few days back."Jaipur blasts: Man claims to have seen suspect", The Times of India, 16 May 2008.
Claim of responsibility A little-known group Indian Mujahideen claimed responsibility for the attacks and sent a video to Aaj Tak via e-mail supposedly featuring the bicycles wrapped with explosives used during the terror attacks. The address from which the e-mail was sent and a serial number on one of the bicycles was identified."Indian group claims responsibility for India bombings", Reuters, 14 May 2008. Police officials confirmed that the bicycle used in Choti Choupad blast had the same serial number. However, Rajasthan Chief Minister Vasundhara Raje also suggested that a secondary objective of the e-mail could be to mislead the investigating authorities."We are in the middle of war, says Raje", The Times of India, 16 May 2008.
In the e-mail, the group threatened an "open war against India" unless it stops supporting the United States and United Kingdom on "international issues"."We did it, terror outfit brags in video", The Times of India, 15 May 2008. It also said that it would "demolish the faith [of the] infidels of India".
Convictions On 20 December 2019, a Special Court in Jaipur convicted four for the bombings and gave them the death penalty while one was acquitted for lack of evidence. The four are Mohammed Saif, Mohammed Sarwar Azmi, Saifur Rehman and Mohammed Salman. On April 8, 2025, a court in Jaipur sentenced four individuals to life imprisonment for their role in the case. However, in March 2023, all four were acquitted of the charges by the Rajasthan High Court.
Domestic reactions
The President of India, Pratibha Patil expressed her grief at the loss of lives in the blasts and appealed for calm while the Prime Minister of India, Manmohan Singh, pledged the Government of India's support to the state Government of Rajasthan and the victims' families.Indian Police Probe Blasts After 60 Killed in Jaipur (Update1), Bloomberg, 14 May 2008. The Prime Minister also said:
The terrorists have the advantage of attacking by stealth but there is no lack of firmness in dealing with this menace. All possible precautions are being taken. It would be premature on my part to comment anything as it will interfere with the investigations." Blasts aimed at creating communal discord: PM", The Hindu, 15 May 2008.
Singh also defended the Government's intelligence mechanisms saying the number of cases that the intelligence agencies had anticipated and prevented was "significant"."No link between POTA repeal and terror strikes: PM" , Express India, 15 May 2008. He observed:
There are many cases where security agencies have foiled attempts. Many cases were anticipated. I don't want to talk about what they were able to prevent.