Uttar Pradesh minister Nand Gopal Nandi was seriously injured in a massive explosion at his residence in Allahabad’s Mutthiganj area on Monday. A guard died in the attack, while his personal assistant and three other staff members were seriously injured. A local journalist who had gone to meet him was also injured.
The minister has been admitted to the Jeevan Jyoti Hospital, where his condition is critical.
State police chief Karamvir Singh and principal home secretary Kunwar Fateh Bahadur rushed to Allahabad.
The investigation has been handed over to the Special Task Force. Mr Nandi was leaving his house in a narrow lane, on his way to a temple, around noon when the explosion occurred. The bomb was planted in a two-wheeler parked outside his house.
The explosion was so strong that the two-wheeler and some other vehicles nearby were blown to pieces. Eyewitnesses said four or five assailants outside his house also fired at the minister and lobbed crude bombs. The minister was hit in the neck by these bullets, reports said.
Mr Nandi, 33, is the cabinet minister for institutional finance, stamp and judicial tax.
Official sources said the attack could be due to political rivalry, but sources close to the minister feared it could be over some property dispute. The minister, sources said, is involved in some major property deals in Allahabad.