8 killed, many injured in blast outside Red Fort

Delhi Fire Service said in a statement that a call was received around 6.55 pm about an explosion and vehicles catching fire. Seven fire tenders were rushed to the spot and the fire was doused by 7.36 pm, the statement said.

Madhur Verma, Joint Commissioner of Police (Central Range) said, “The car was CNG-equipped. It is too early to comment on the nature of the blast at this point.”

The incident happened near Delhi’s Red Fort.

A team of the Delhi Police Special Cell and local police have started a preliminary investigation into the incident. The National Security Guard (NSG) and National Investigation Agency (NIA) have also been roped in. A high alert has been sounded across Delhi.

Videos of the aftermath of the explosion showed flames across a large area, bodies strewn on the road, and people trying to rescue victims from the flames. Local residents who live close to the Sis Ganj gurdwara said their windows were shattered, and they had rushed out of their homes.

Sanjay Bhargava, president of the Chandni Chowk Sarv Vyapar Mandal (traders’ association), told The Indian Express: “It was a massive blast. The shaking could be felt as far as 700 to 900 metres away. Buildings shook as if an earthquake had struck… There were bodies lying on the road.”

The area has been cordoned off and police have been deployed in large numbers

The Red Fort metro station is on the main road between Delhi Gate in Central Delhi to Kashmere Gate to the north. It is opposite the road leading to Chandni Chowk, and is around 1.5 kilometres from Jama Masjid. The Old Delhi Railway Station is around 2 kilometres away.

The site of the blast is directly opposite the pedestrian stretch of Chandni Chowk. Describing the situation in the market, Bhargava said: “All shops have now been shut. The roads are packed, and there’s panic among shoppers. People are rushing to leave… There’s a long queue outside the market’s parking area as everyone is trying to get to their cars and exit as quickly as possible.”

Restrictions were imposed on entry to the metro station. “Delhi Police has restricted Entry/Exit at Gate no. 1 and 4 at Lal Qila. However Metro services are running normally throughout the network,” the Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC) said in a statement.