New Delhi, Sep 27 (IANS) A young boy was killed and 17 people were injured when a bomb flung by two men from a motorcycle exploded Saturday with a deafening roar in a crowded area of Mehrauli in south Delhi.
At least three of the injured were in critical condition, a hospital spokesman said, as private vehicles and ambulances raced the injured to the Safdarjang Hospital and the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) some 10 km away.
Police said the boy, believed to be 13-year-old Santosh Kumar, had his head blown off when he picked up the bomb concealed in a lunch box and wrapped in a black polythene bag in the congested Mehrauli Sarai electronics market.
The blast took place around 2.15 p.m. outside an electronics shop. Saturday's terror attack came two weeks after five bombs went off in three crowded areas in Delhi, killing 24 people and injuring 124.
Delhi Police Commissioner Y.S. Dadwal told reporters at Mehrauli that the men who threw the bomb on a road were riding a black Pulsar motorcycle. They wore jeans, had covered their heads with helmets and sped away.
Barely a minute later, the bomb exploded. The motorcycle was reportedly found abandoned a few kilometres away.
The explosion rattled shops and houses in a large area close to a flower market sparking panic, as smoke rapidly enveloped the street, almost blinding everyone.
Residents complained that the police took more than an hour to reach Mehrauli, a sprawling historic area on the city's southern fringe which is home to the 13th century Qutab Minar monument.
'Two youths on a motorcycle left a packet in a polythene bag outside an electronic shop and sped off. It began smoking and soon afterward there was a huge explosion,' said Pritam, an eyewitness.
The impact of the blast was so devastating that glass panes of several shops were shattered. As many collapsed on the narrow road, pools of blood formed on the street.
Sanjeev Goel, a doctor at AIIMS, put the death toll at one - a figure confirmed by the police. Goel said a total of 17 people were injured, with three of them in critical condition. All three were being operated.
Goel said the injured included 11 men and three women.
Deputy Commissioner of Police (South Delhi) H.G.S. Dhaliwal said the entire incident took place very rapidly. He said the bombing suspects were aged around 25 years and had covered their heads with helmets.
One shopkeeper who was among the first to rush to the bombed site said he saw several people lying on the street.
'There was a lot of smoke, everything was hazy. I could not see properly. People were shouting.
'Since there was no police, we began to rush the injured to hospitals in cars and autos.'
A middle-aged woman gave a slightly different account of what had happened.
'There were two people on a bike. I was on a scooter. They were trying to overtake me. Then it slowed down. An object like a papaya fruit wrapped in a newspaper was rolled on the road. After a few minutes, I heard a major explosion. Then there was smoke everywhere.'
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