Twin explosions put Punjab on edge
Two explosions near military complexes have put the northern state of Punjab on edge. Authorities are still investigating the source of the blasts. Meanwhile TVK's Vijay seeks an alliance in Tamil Nadu
Highlights:
- Twin explosions in Punjab put state on alert
- Tamil Nadu victor TVK seeks alliance to form government
- West Bengal awaits BJP's name for Chief Minister
- Indian cabinet expands Supreme Court seats to tackle backlog
Two explosions occurred outside military complexes in two cities in the northern state of Punjab on Monday night, within hours of each other.
The incidents, still under investigation, did not lead to any deaths but have put authorities in the border state on high alert.
Keep updated, follow The Business Standard's Google news channel
The Jalandhar explosion
The first explosion took place outside the Border Security Force's complex in Jalandhar at about 8 pm (1430 GMT) on Monday, news agency PTI reported.
A security camera captured the incident and the resultant cloud of smoke, while a man ran for cover. The blast ripped a scooter apart, damaged nearby shops and a traffic signal.
Jalandhar Police Commissioner Dhanpreet Kaur confirmed to reporters late Tuesday that a scooter parked near the gate suddenly caught fire.
The man who was seen running for cover is said to have seen his scooter catch fire, after which he informed his father of the incident. Authorities said he was fully cooperating with the investigation.
The Times of India, citing a senior Punjab Police officer, said the Khalistan Liberation Army (KLA) had taken responsibility for the Jalandhar blast. The KLA is an armed separatist outfit active in Punjab, with alleged supporters abroad including Canada and Pakistan. India's Home Ministry designates it as a terrorist organisation.
Authorities, however, said it was too early to confirm if the explosion was due to an accidental fire or a planned explosion, and were investigating all possible leads.
The Amritsar explosion
Just hours after the Jalandhar incident, authorities in the city of Amritsar reported a loud noise outside an army camp.
Indian media reported that Amritsar's Rural Senior Superintendent of Police said that fragments resembling a sheet of metal were found embedded in the boundary wall at the site of the explosion.
This indicates that someone had thrown an explosive device towards the wall, which caused the blast, Suhail Qasim Mir said.
Authorities are yet to comment on whether the two incidents were related.
Why is Punjab on edge?
The twin explosions come just days after an attempted blast in another city in the state. On 27 April, a suspected extremist died during an attempted detonation on a freight corridor rail track in the city of Patiala.
Police had arrested four members allegedly part of a Pakistan-linked separatist group for the blast.
State opposition leader Sukhbir Singh Badal criticised the sitting chief minister for lack of security in the state.
"Three blasts in 10 days, two in a single day," Badal wrote on X. "Continued intelligence failures and collapse of law and order are a matter of grave concern."
The movement to create an independent Sikh nation, known as Khalistan, led to the killing of tens of thousands of people in the 1980s and 1990s. The recent blasts and mentions of Khalistan serve as a dark reminder to the people of Punjab when insurgency, violence and extrajudicial killings were rampant in the state.
