Nine dead, nearly 50 injured as terror strikes New Delhi High Court
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As terror struck outside the Delhi High Court, a man who lost one of his legs was seen trying to get away from the site as limbs and pieces of flesh were strewn on the ground along with shards of glass.
It was a horrifying scene near the court with lawyers and litigants in blood-soaked clothes running helter-skelter as soon as the blast took place.
A lawyer said the gate (Gate No.5) where the blast happened is one of the most crowded gates at the High Court premises and it was the 'peak hour' at the court.
"This is the time when hundreds of people come here for making passes to enter the High Court. I was 200 metres away when the blast took place," he said.
According to eyewitness, Bhagwan Das: "The explosion severed the limbs of several people."
'We don't know who attacked us'
The briefcase bomb which went off outside New Delhi High Court has claimed a total of nine live and has injured nearly 50 people. This is the second blast in four months for the capital.
Union Home Minister R.K. Singh said the blast was of 'medium to high intensity' and created a 'deep crater' at the site of explosion at the reception area between Gate No.4 and 5 of Delhi High Court. The blast occurred around 10: 15 AM.
Home Minister P. Chidambaram, meanwhile, said in his statement that 'at this it is not possible to identify the group that caused the bomb blast today'.
He said 'intelligence was shared with Delhi Police in July'.
"Delhi is the target of terrorist groups. When parliament is in session and during certain other times of the year, Delhi is placed on high alert," Chidambaram said.
"Intelligence pertaining to threat emanating from certain groups was shared with Delhi Police in July 2011," he said, but did not elaborate if the input was specifically related to what happened on Wednesday.
The home ministry has confirmed that it was a terror attack adding, 'it had all the makings of an Improvised Explosive Device(IED) set up by a terror group'.
Special Commissioner Dharmendra Kumar told reporters the bomb was kept in a briefcase, since some of its remains were still in it.
Gate No.5 was crowded with 100 to 200 people waiting in queue to get entry passes. There were several lawyers at the spot.
"We are investigating how the brief case was placed there It is not a controlled area. There were lots of people," said Kumar.
Probe
The National Investigation Agency has now taken over the probe. A nation-wide alert has also been sounded by the government and other major cities, including Mumbai, are now taking extra security measures. An NSG team has also arrived in the capital.
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