NEW DELHI, INDIA, September 25, 2002: Temples and other places of worship across the country are under tight security following the terrorist attack at the Swaminarayan Temple in Gandhinagar. Keeping in mind the recent riots in Gujarat after the Godhra train massacre, the Army has deployed 3,000 personnel to sensitive areas of Gujarat as a precaution against any problems that may arise. Besides Gujarat, several states, including Maharashtra, West Bengal, Uttar Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu, were already on high alert within hours after the attack at Gandhinagar. In New Delhi the Joint Commissioner of Police Satish Chandra said, “Special alert has been sounded all over the city and we are taking all necessary steps.” Tight security arrangements had been made in the sprawling Chhatarpur temple complex, the Iskcon temple, the Baha’i temple, Malai Mandir, Laxmi Narayan temple, the Hanuman temples at Connaught Place and Yamuna Bazaar, Gaurish temple in Chandni Chowk and other prominent shrines. Police personnel have also been deployed outside important gurudwaras, churches, mosques, Buddhist monasteries and Jain temples while devotees were being frisked and vehicles checked.
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