Some followed the line that it was a genuine attempt to assassinate caretaker Prime Minister Thaksin Shin-awatra while others thought the whole episode was a set up by the government to divert people's attention and give the government an excuse to declare a state of emergency.

Thai Rath, the country's best-selling paper, carried front-page photos of a car laden with explosives with text saying it was a car bomb that was intended to kill Thaksin.

The paper reported the incident with quotes from people who said they believed it was a plot to assassinate the prime minister.

On its inside pages, Thai Rath questioned whether the incident was staged by the government or was a real attempt to kill the premier.

The Daily News also reported officials comments on the incident, under a headline saying that all the evidence tied Army Lt Thawatchai Klinchana to a plot to kill Thaksin using a car laden with explosives.

The paper also shows photos and a diagram of the explosives.

On its inside pages, the Daily News ran reports following the government line that it was a plot to kill Thaksin, yet it commented that the incident was set up in order to press Thaksin to step down.

Meanwhile, Matichon, while reporting the incident as told by officials, said it didn't believe the bomb was meant to kill Thaksin.

The paper said the government seemed to conclude very quickly that the incident was meant to kill Thaksin.

The paper also published photos of the police arresting suspect Thawatchai. There is also a sidebar article saying there were "traces of a plan to kill Thaksin four days before the car bomb".

Khao Sod shared the arrest photos on its front page while reporting the official explanations of the incident. It also devoted a pictures page to Thursday's incident.

Thai Post and Manager, which are firmly in the anti-Thaksin camp, ran articles and headlines saying the incident was set up in order to give the government the opportunity to declare a state of emergency and uproot political opponents.

English-language dailies The Nation and the Bangkok Post were thinking along the same lines, with articles saying there were questions about the authenticity of an assassination plot.

Just as the reports in the daily papers differed, so too did the views of politicians, Army officers and academics.

The government seems firmly convinced that it was a plot to assassinate Thaksin. Spokesman Surapong Suebwonglee said the government regarded the incident as an attempt by a group that wanted to create a disturbance.

Former Thai Rak Thai MP Suchart Srisung said the issue would increase tension in the country, as vehement pro-Thaksin supporters would now be more sympathetic to him, while anti-Thaksin people would hate him even more because they believe it was a set up.

And neutral people would still be confused, he said.

The leader of the Civil Society Network to Stop the Thaksin System, Sangsit Piriyarangsan, said he  suspected the affair was an attempt to declare a state of emergency .

Sucheera Pinijparakarn

The Nation