NEW DELHI, 13 March 2006 — Eyewitnesses failed to identify eight suspects in connection with the blasts in the ancient city of Varanasi that killed 23 people, police said yesterday. All the suspects were later released.

Police were confident that two of the eight men, Sadiq Ali and Ansar, were linked to the blasts since they bore a striking resemblance to the computer-generated sketches. The six others, also picked up in the state Friday night, were their acquaintances.

“They (suspects) were paraded a number of times. But the witnesses could not recognize even one of them, and all the eight were freed after questioning, G.K. Goswami, senior superintendent of police, said.

“There is no concrete evidence, no definite clue,” he said.

The eight suspects all hail from neighboring Bihar state, Goswami said.

The witnesses were shopkeepers from the Godhulia area in the city, who had helped police in preparing the sketches.

The blasts were carried out by suspected militants in Varanasi on March 7. More than 50 people were injured. A previously unknown Kashmiri group took credit for the bombings. Police have offered a 100,000 rupee reward for information leading to the arrest of those responsible for the attack.

Yesterday, a Hindu social activist and a Muslim poet led a peace march of nearly 100 people through Varanasi and urged Hindus and Muslims to stay calm and maintain harmony.

The marchers chanted “Hindus, Muslims are one” as they started walking from the Sankat Mochan temple where the bombing occurred on Tuesday.

“No terrorist can disturb the peace,” said Javed Akhtar, a popular Hindi film songwriter.

Swami Agnivesh, a Hindu social activist, said he was participating in the march to highlight India’s cosmopolitan culture.

“Those who want to divide Hindus and Muslims will never succeed.”

Also yesterday, police were looking for suspects who left an improvised explosive device in a toilet in Byculla railway station in Bombay.

The explosive — two kg of ammonium nitrate in a plastic bottle — was defused by police shortly after it was discovered on Saturday, the Sunday Hindustan Times newspaper reported. — Additional input from agencies.