Thirteen people have been reported killed so far with several others injured. Nine people have been killed in Varanasi. Four deaths have been reported from Faizabad.
All the blasts went off in and around civil courts. It seems the explosives were packed on parked bicycles in the court complexes.
Steel pellets have been recovered from the blast sites, which were also used in the Hyderabad blasts in August.
''There was smoke everywhere. People were hurt and bleeding. We did not see the bomb but the explosion was very powerful,'' said an eyewitness in Varanasi.
The Home Ministry says it's a terrorist strike meant to disturb communal harmony.
''There were simultaneous blasts in three cities. This makes it clear these blasts are a result of a deep conspiracy. I can't say which organisation is behind the incident. But the motive could be to disturb communal harmony and to create fear and terror among the people. My appeal to the people of Uttar Pradesh is to remain united and defeat the motives of such terrorists,'' said Sriprakash Jaiswal, Minister of State for Home.
Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Mayawati expressed sympathy with the victims of the blasts. She announced Rs 2 lakh as compensation to the kin of dead and Rs 50,000 to the injured.
Addressing a press meet, Mayawati said the state STF is on high alert and that the Central Intelligence Agencies did not warn of any possible blasts.
UPA chairperson Sonia Gandhi and Prime minister Manmohan Singh have also condemned the blasts.
The PM announced an ex-gratia of Rs 1 lakh for the dead and Rs 50,000 for those injured in the blasts.
Sonia Gandhi said the ''dastardly act'' was intended to create panic and asked the state government to find out the culprits and deal with them sternly.
''The serial blasts in Lucknow, Faizabad and Varanasi are quite shocking,'' Gandhi said reacting to the incident.
Email threat
A little known group called the Indian Mujahideen has claimed responsibility. The group apparently sent an email to a private TV channel just five minutes before the blasts.
They claimed responsibility for the blasts in Delhi and Hyderabad but refused any association with the attacks on the Mecca Masjid, the Samjhauta Express or the terror strike in Malegaon.
They also said they are purely Indian and not connected to the ISI, the Lashkar-e-Toiba or Huji.
The email says the Jihad in India is in retaliation against the injustice to Muslims in India, the demolition of the Babri Masjid and the Gujarat riots.
The mail further said that the blasts today were carried out because the police arrested two innocent people and framed them and lawyers at the three cities beat them when they were produced in court, refused to defend them and stopped others from taking up their case.
According to the police, the blasts may be in retaliation to the arrested terrorists being beaten up by lawyers and not being assigned even a counsel to defend them in the court.
Only a week ago, the UP police along with central security agencies busted a Jaish-e-Mohammed module which planned to abduct Rahul Gandhi.
Bomb disposal squads have been pressed into service in the three districts and were conducting extensive searches of court premises. Terror struck Uttar Pradesh on Friday afternoon with five bomb blasts going off almost simultaneously in three cities of Varanasi, Lucknow and Faizabad.Thirteen people have been reported killed so far with several others injured. Nine people have been killed in Varanasi. Four deaths have been reported from Faizabad.All the blasts went off in and around civil courts. It seems the explosives were packed on parked bicycles in the court complexes.Steel pellets have been recovered from the blast sites, which were also used in the Hyderabad blasts in August.''There was smoke everywhere. People were hurt and bleeding. We did not see the bomb but the explosion was very powerful,'' said an eyewitness in Varanasi.The Home Ministry says it's a terrorist strike meant to disturb communal harmony.''There were simultaneous blasts in three cities. This makes it clear these blasts are a result of a deep conspiracy. I can't say which organisation is behind the incident. But the motive could be to disturb communal harmony and to create fear and terror among the people. My appeal to the people of Uttar Pradesh is to remain united and defeat the motives of such terrorists,'' said Sriprakash Jaiswal, Minister of State for Home.Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Mayawati expressed sympathy with the victims of the blasts. She announced Rs 2 lakh as compensation to the kin of dead and Rs 50,000 to the injured.Addressing a press meet, Mayawati said the state STF is on high alert and that the Central Intelligence Agencies did not warn of any possible blasts.UPA chairperson Sonia Gandhi and Prime minister Manmohan Singh have also condemned the blasts.The PM announced an ex-gratia of Rs 1 lakh for the dead and Rs 50,000 for those injured in the blasts.Sonia Gandhi said the ''dastardly act'' was intended to create panic and asked the state government to find out the culprits and deal with them sternly.''The serial blasts in Lucknow, Faizabad and Varanasi are quite shocking,'' Gandhi said reacting to the incident.A little known group called the Indian Mujahideen has claimed responsibility. The group apparently sent an email to a private TV channel just five minutes before the blasts.They claimed responsibility for the blasts in Delhi and Hyderabad but refused any association with the attacks on the Mecca Masjid, the Samjhauta Express or the terror strike in Malegaon.They also said they are purely Indian and not connected to the ISI, the Lashkar-e-Toiba or Huji.The email says the Jihad in India is in retaliation against the injustice to Muslims in India, the demolition of the Babri Masjid and the Gujarat riots.The mail further said that the blasts today were carried out because the police arrested two innocent people and framed them and lawyers at the three cities beat them when they were produced in court, refused to defend them and stopped others from taking up their case.According to the police, the blasts may be in retaliation to the arrested terrorists being beaten up by lawyers and not being assigned even a counsel to defend them in the court.Only a week ago, the UP police along with central security agencies busted a Jaish-e-Mohammed module which planned to abduct Rahul Gandhi.Bomb disposal squads have been pressed into service in the three districts and were conducting extensive searches of court premises. Story Finder 2007 2006 2005 2004 2003 2002
Location of Uttar Pradesh within India.
Five bombs went off nearly simutaneously in three Indian cities in the state of Uttar Pradesh. Court houses in Lucknow, Varanasi and Faizabad were rocked. The attack on the justice system killed 13 people and injured another 61.

"These are all soft targets. Weapons and explosives are no more a challenge for these groupings," said Ajai Sahni, an executive director of the New Delhi-based Institute for Conflict Management. "Uttar Pradesh has long been a target because it's a poorly administered state and a poor state."

Police in New Delhi have increased security at bus stands, airports, shopping areas and railway stations. According to CNN IBN, the government will pay Rs.200,000 to the families of those killed. Those who were injured will receive Rp.50,000.

In Lucknow, an unexploded device with a timer was found. All the other bombs went off at around 1:30 p.m. IST (UTC+5:30).

"It's too early to say who are behind the blasts, but it is very clear that the blasts were pre-planned," according to Shriprakash Jaiswal, a junior home minister. "The investigating agencies have got down to the job."