Imphal, Sep 18 (IANS) A car bomb was detected parked in the Manipur Raj Bhawan Friday, foiling a well-planned terror attack that could have blown up the governor's office-cum-residence.

A police spokesperson said a Maruti car was parked in the complex and was discovered around 2 p.m., triggering a scare.

Governor Gurbachan Jagat, a former police chief of Jammu and Kashmir, was in the Raj Bhawan when the bomb was found.

"Preliminary investigations reveal that moulded gelatin fitted to a mobile telephone handset was cleverly concealed in the back seat. The bomb has been detonated by experts," Imphal police chief L. Kailun told IANS. "This is definitely a terror act and we are on the job to find out more."

"Investigations are now on to ascertain how the car managed to enter Raj Bhawan," the police chief said.

"Although security officials routinely check all vehicles entering the governor's house, the fact that the explosives were hidden inside the back seat probably helped evade the security net."

Meanwhile, the outlawed Kangleipak Communist Party (KCP), a rebel group fighting for an independent homeland for the Metei community of Manipur, claimed responsibility for planting the bomb. A KCP leader telephoned newspaper offices to own up the incident.

"We have heard about KCP's claim and the investigations are on," Kailun said.

There are 19 separatist groups active in Manipur, which borders Myanmar, with demands ranging from secession to greater autonomy. Insurgent violence has claimed about 10,000 lives in the past two decades.