INDIA yesterday blamed its bitter rival Pakistan for an attack on a major Hindu temple that left 32 people dead.

　　Pakistan denied the accusation, which hiked up tensions between the nuclear-armed neighbors.

　　India yesterday deployed thousands of troops to prevent an eruption of Hindu-Muslim rioting after the Tuesday attack in the western state of Gujarat. The attack lasted 14 hours until Indian commandos stormed the temple at dawn yesterday and killed the two gunmen.

　　Fears were high in Gujarat that the assault would re-spark sectarian bloodshed that tore the state apart earlier this year. At least 1,000 people were killed in Gujarat, most of them Muslims slain by Hindu mobs, in riots after a Muslim attack on Hindu train passengers in February.

　　The assault on the Swaminarayan Temple in Gandhinagar, Gujarat’s capital, began Tuesday evening, when the gunmen attacked with grenades and assault rifles.

　　Up to 500 pilgrims, priests, museum guides and souvenir traders were in the complex when the attackers roared up in a car, leapt over the fence and began firing.