High alert after car blast near Red Fort

At least 8 killed and 24 injured; PM and Home Minister review the situation; Shah says ‘all angles open’

- PRESS TRUST OF INDIA

Firefighters at the spot after a blast occurred in a car near Red Fort, leaving multiple vehicles in flames, in New Delhi on Monday

(PHOTO: PTI)

A high-intensity explosion ripped through aslow-movingcarat atraffic signal near the Red Fort metro station on Monday evening, killing at least eight people and gutting several vehicles, officials said.

Twenty-four people were injured in the blast that took place ona busy evening when the area was milling with people. The injured were taken to the LNJP hospital, a few kilometres away.

Delhi Police Commissioner Satish Golcha said the car, in which the blast took place, had some occupants.

According to a senior police officer, “The blast occurred in a moving Hyundai i20 car in which three people were sitting. We have not found any pellet or puncture in the body of the injured, which is unusual in a bomb blast. We are investigating all angles.” Police sources said the car was registered in the name of one Nadeem Khan and bore a Haryana number plate.

Ahigh alert has been sounded in Delhi, and security has been beefed up at city border points, with vehicle checking intensified.

Police teams are conducting checking drives at metrostationsand crowded places, and erected barricades at key locations to inspect suspicious vehicles. Several states including Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh, Punjab, Rajasthan have issueda highalert.