Explosion heard afar; 'felt like bomb attack'

The blast near Red Fort shattered the evening calm, turning the busy Chandni Chowk intersection into a scene of chaos, fire, and horror

- Jignasa Sinha and Gargi Shukla

Delhi Fire Services officials douse the flames while police personnel take stock of the situation at the explosion site on Monday night.

(SANJEEV VERMA/HT PHOTO)

The explosion outside Delhi's Red Fort on Monday evening was so powerful that people hundreds of metres away reported hearing a deafening boom and seeing a flash of red light tear through the night. Within seconds, the usual frenzy at the intersection in front of Chandni Chowk turned into a scene of carnage with body parts scattered on the road, cars engulfed in flames, and terrified people running for their lives.

Residents as far as Daryaganj said that glass panes in their homes rattled, even as windows shattered in nearby homes and shops. Witnesses at the scene of the blast said the force of the explosion flung people into the air. Some even claimed to have seen body parts hurled more than 200 metres away one reportedly landing on a ferris wheel near the fairground.

"I have never heard such a loud explosion in my life," said Md Sameem, a shopkeeper from Kabootar Market, about 200 metres from the site. "I fell thrice because of the shockwave. There was red light everywhere. We saw burnt bodies, burnt cars everywhere. I was near metro station. Even inside Jain mandir, windows were shaking. Our shops were shaking. It felt like a bomb attack."