Blast outside Delhi HC, 9 killed

New Delhi, Sept 7 (PTI) Terror struck Delhi when a
powerful bomb blast ripped through a crowded reception area at
the entrance to the High Court this morning killing nine
people and injuring atleast 50.
The explosive device was suspected to kept in a
briefcase outside the High Court compound between Gate No. 4
and 5 and went off at around 10.15 AM when 100 to 200
litigants were waiting to get passes to enter the premises.
Some lawyers were also present at that time.
Condemning the "terrorst attack", Home Minister P
Chidambaram said in Parliament that nine people were dead and
47 injured, some seriously.
Chidambaram announced that the probe into the second
bomb blast outside Delhi High Court in four months has been
handed over to the National Investigative Agency(NIA). He said
the bomb was suspected to have been kept in a briefcase.
No one has claimed responsibility fo the blast in the heart of
the Capital which left a deep crater.
Union Home Secretary R K Singh said the blast was of
"medium to high intensity" and created a "deep crater".
Asked whether the blast was a terror strike, Singh said
"it had all the makings of an Improvised Explosive Device(IED)
set up by a terror group."
Singh said the bomb was kept in a suitcase since some of
its remains were still in it.
After the bomb blast, panic-stricken people ran
helter-skelter as it was chaos at the High Court premises.
Rahul Gupta, a litigant, was at the reception counter
just 10 metres away from the blast site.
"I was just 10 metres from the site of the blast," said
Gupta, adding, he saw "large number of injured people being
taken to hospital."
Singh said the blast had all the makings of an
Improvised Explosive Device(IED) set up by a terror group.
The blast happened in a public area where anyone can
just come and drop a suitcase and walk away, he added.
The explosion left lawyers, litigants and passersby
stunned. The entry pass counter was also partially damaged.
"It was "a deafening sound and what happened later was
quite devastating," Ajay Aggarwal, a Supreme Court lawyer and
an eye-witness, told PTI.
Delhi police suspected use of potassium nitrate in the
bomb.
"We are investigating how the brief case was placed
there It is not a controlled area. There were lots of people,"
said Special Commissioner Dharmendra Kumar.
Court proceedings were also suspended for a while. The
main court premises where all the courtrooms are housed were
evacuated.
The injured were taken to RML, Safdarjung and AIIMS
hospitals with many of them suffered burn injuries.
Teams of National Investigating Agency(NIA) and National
Security Guards(NSG) also rushed the spot before any evidence
could be lost in the rans which lashed the Capital.
Court business is usually heavy on Wednesday which is
listed as a Public Interest Litation(PIL) day when the
visitors come to the court in large numbers.
An explosion on May 25 triggered panic prompting the
authorities to sound a high alert in the capital and tighten
security at public places. No one was injured.
Low-intensity explosives, wrapped in a polythene bag and
kept close to the car parked near Gate No. 7, went off around
1.30 PM. Ammonium nitrate, a battery-like object, wires and
some nails were found at the site by forensic experts.
The previous major terror attack in the Capital was on
September 13, 2008 when a series of five synchronised bomb
blasts took place within a span of few minutes at various
locations in Delhi. 30 people were killed and over 100 injured
in this strike. PTI PNM
MNS