NEW DELHI, INDIA—A powerful, high-intensity explosion ripped through the heart of Old Delhi on Monday evening, killing at least eight people and injuring more than two dozen others, after a car burst into flames near the city’s historic Red Fort landmark.
The blast, which occurred during the busy evening rush hour, instantly plunged the national capital into chaos and triggered a high-alert security warning across multiple states as investigative agencies race to determine if the incident was a tragic accident or a deliberate act of terrorism.
The Scene of Devastation
The explosion occurred around 6:50 p.m. local time when a slow-moving Hyundai i20 stopped at a traffic signal on Subhash Marg, near Gate No. 1 of the Red Fort Metro Station.
- Massive Impact: Eyewitnesses reported a sound so loud it shook nearby buildings, instantly destroying the primary vehicle and triggering a massive fire that engulfed at least a half-dozen nearby cars, auto-rickshaws, and motorcycles.
- Casualties: At least eight people have been confirmed dead, with victims including both occupants of the exploded car and pedestrians. Over 20 people were rushed to Lok Nayak Jai Prakash Narayan (LNJP) Hospital, with several listed in critical condition.
- Eyewitness Horror: “I saw flames from my house and rushed down,” one local resident told the media. “There was a loud explosion—it shook everything. One person’s body was torn into pieces. I saw a hand on the road.”
Teams from the Delhi Fire Department, along with the Bomb Disposal Squad, rushed to the congested area to douse the flames and secure the scene.
Cause Unknown: All Angles Probed
The immediate focus of the investigation, which has been handed over to India’s federal counter-terrorism agency, the National Investigation Agency (NIA), is to determine the nature and cause of the explosion. Forensic experts from the National Security Guard (NSG) and the Forensic Science Laboratory (FSL) are meticulously collecting samples from the blast site.
- Terror Angle: The explosion’s high intensity and its location—adjacent to a UNESCO World Heritage Site and in a sensitive, high-density area of the capital—have raised immediate speculation of a terror link. This suspicion is amplified by the fact that security agencies, just hours earlier, had announced the seizure of nearly 3,000 kg of explosive-making materials and the arrest of several individuals linked to proscribed terror outfits in the wider region.
- Accidental Explosion: Police officials have cautioned that the explosion could have been caused by an accidental detonation of an improvised device, a malfunction of a Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) kit, or a blast from a commercial gas cylinder illegally transported in the vehicle. Home Minister Amit Shah, who visited the site and the injured at the hospital, stated: “We are exploring all possibilities and will conduct a thorough investigation, taking all possibilities into account. All options will be investigated immediately.”
Security has been intensified at Delhi’s airports, railway stations, and metro networks. Authorities in neighboring states, including Uttar Pradesh and Maharashtra, have also been placed on high alert as the nation waits for the definitive results of the forensic analysis.