Seven injured in Lahore bomb blast

LAHORE: At least seven persons, including a woman, were injured when a bomb went off in a rickshaw near the Chauburji Quarters on Friday.

The rickshaw driver, identified as Ramzan (28), son of Wazir, received minor injuries. Upon being informed, the rescuers rushed to the scene and shifted the injured persons to a local hospital where condition of two injured persons was said to be precarious.

The injured were identified as Sadaf (35), daughter of Nazeer, Azeem (18), son of Shaukat, Aleem (49), son of Akhtar, Asim (28), son of Mahmood, Adeel (28), son of Bashir, and Saleem (55), son of Azam.

The driver told the police that he picked up a passenger carrying some luggage from Shera Kot and dropped him off at Samanabad Morr. Later, he parked his rickshaw bearing number LEU-9060 near Chauburji Quarters and left to answer the call of nature when the explosion took place in his vehicle. The rickshaw was completely destroyed as there were clear marks of ball bearings on the charred wreckage of the rickshaw. The blast occurred at around 11:15am and initial reports suggested that it was the explosion of a cylinder, installed in the vehicle.

The bomb disposal experts collected remains of the bomb and other material from the scene to ascertain the nature of the explosive weighing around 2kg. They said the explosion developed no crater at the crime scene as it was about two-foot above the ground level. According to experts, the substance used in the bombing smelled like high explosive, which contained ball bearings as well.

Heavy contingent of police and other law-enforcement agencies (LEAs) rushed to the spot and started a search operation. The Punjab chief minister took notice of the incident and ordered the CCPO Lahore to submit a report within 24 hours in this regard.

The CTD claimed that a blast occurred in a rickshaw in the Chauburji area of Lahore at about 11:25am. According to crime scene details, 10 persons were injured, including the driver. All sustained minor injuries. All injured were passing by near the rickshaw at the time of blast. Driver Ramzan said that a passenger had boarded the rickshaw. He got down at Samanabad after paying the fare. The passenger was carrying a shopping bag which he probably left in the rickshaw. The driver said that he did not notice it. The driver reached Chauburji from the Multan Road and alighted from it for urinating along the road. That was the time when the blast occurred.

According to the Bomb Disposal Squad and Punjab Forensic Science Agency’s (initial assessment, it can be an improvised explosive device (IED). Weight and nature would be determined later on after analysis. An FIR was not lodged with the CTD Police Station Lahore till the filing of the report.