Islamic State launches first terrorist attack on India

A bomb attack on a train in India has been confirmed as the first successful terrorist strike by Islamic State (IS) in the country.

The blast struck a train near the town of Kalapipal Mandi in Madhya Pradesh on Tuesday, reports The Times. Several suspects have been arrested, according to Indian security officials, who say they believe the IS cell behind the attack was in contact with the terror group's central command in Syria.

One was shot dead by police after an anti-terror operation at a house in Lucknow, the capital of the northern Uttar Pradesh state.

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Police spokesperson Rahul Srivastava told the BBC that they had intended to catch all the suspects alive, but one was found "heavily armed".

Srivastava says the police "recovered more than 600 bullets, pistols and an IS flag from the house", adding: "We recovered a laptop and have also questioned the arrested men. These people were radicalised through social media, and were in contact with other IS members."

A top intelligence official told the Times of India that the blast in the passenger train was a "trial run" by the group, which was planning major attacks.

Previously, IS has tried to carry out attacks in Indian cities, including Delhi, Mumbai, Bengaluru and Hyderabad, through various cells. But all such attempts were foiled, says the newspaper.

"The emergence of Isis marks a significant change in the terrorist threat faced by a nation that is 80 per cent Hindu," says The Times.

Last year, Indian home minister Rajnath Singh downplayed the threat of IS, saying: "I'm sure the threat of radicalisation by IS won't be an issue in our nation because people who follow Islam in India, love the country."

Then just last month Singh said "the government has kept an eye on IS, and it won't be allowed to become a major challenge for the country".

"It is clear from the events in the past 24 hours that either Singh's earlier assessment about IS's influence was wrong, or the government is failing in its duty to resist the IS infection," says the First Post.