High alert sounded in Delhi after car explodes near Red Fort metro station; at least 8 dead
Eight people have died in an explosion in a car near the Red Fort metro station. Three to four cars also caught fire when the blast occurred.
An explosion near Gate no 1 of the Red Fort metro station in Delhi has led to at least eight deaths and multiple injuries.
The Delhi Fire Department said that it had received a call regarding an explosion in a car car near the Red Fort Metro Station in the national capital, after which three to four vehicles there caught fire.
Five fire tenders have been rushed to the spot.
15 people injured in the blast were taken to the Lok Nayak Jai Prakash (LNJP) hospital, but eight of them died on the way, as per a report by ANI.
A high alert has been sounded in Delhi in the wake of this incident.
Delhi Police Commissioner Satish Golcha says, "Today at around 6.52 pm, a slow-moving vehicle stopped at the red light. An explosion happened in that vehicle, and due to the explosion, nearby vehicles were also damaged. All agencies, FSL, NIA, are here... Some people have died, and some have been injured in the incident. The situation is being monitored. The Home Minister has also called us, and information is being shared with him from time to time."
A local shopkeeper told ANI, “I fell three times due to the explosion. It felt as if we were all going to die.”
An injured eyewitness, who received a wound on his head, told PTI that the explosion appeared to have originated from a car, which was probably a Swift.
“There was a Swift car in front of my auto. There was something in that car that suddenly blasted,” he told the publication.
Another witness told PTI, “I was at the gurdwara when I heard a strong sound. We couldn’t make out what it was, it was that loud.”
“A number of vehicles nearby were completely damaged,” he added.
Former Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal has reacted on the situation, saying that “Negligence regarding Delhi's security cannot be tolerated”. He has also asked for an investigation to find out if there is any larger conspiracy behind it.
This incident comes in the wake of eight terrorist being arrested from Jammu and Kashmir, Haryana, and Uttar Pradesh. This arrested individual was part of a “white collar terror module”, as per the Jammu and Kashmir police.
One of them was caught with 360 kg of ammonium nitrate.
More to follow…