 "A member of the forensic team works at the site of an explosion near the historic Red Fort in the old quarters of Delhi. Reuters")
On Monday evening (November 10), an explosion took place inside a car near the historic Red Fort in Delhi, killing eight people and injuring at least 20 others. Shortly after the blast, authorities from the Delhi Police, the National Investigation Agency (NIA) and the National Security Guard (NSG) arrived at the scene, scouring the wreckage finding clues to what exactly unfolded.
India’s Home Minister Amit Shah has vowed that “all possibilities are being explored and a thorough investigation will be conducted taking all options into account.” Moreover, he’s called for a high-level meeting on Tuesday morning (November 11) to discuss the unfolding investigation into the explosion near the Red Fort in Delhi.
As of now, the cause of the car blast has not yet been determined with Home Minister Amit Shah saying, “We are investigating from all angles. It is difficult to say what caused the incident. Till the samples recovered from the site are analysed by the Forensic Sciences Laboratory (FSL) and the National Security Guard (NSG), it is difficult to say anything. We do not rule out anything.”
However, initial investigations are already providing us with some clues as to what happened near the Red Fort on Monday evening. Here’s what we know so far.
An explosion rocks Delhi
The bustling city of Delhi came to a near standstill on Monday evening when a car exploded amid the crowds near the famous landmark of Red Fort. The explosion took place in the early evening as people returned from work, close to a metro station in the crowded Old Delhi quarter of the city.
According to eyewitnesses present at the scene during the blast, the blaze engulfed at least six cars and several motorised rickshaw taxis. Dharmender, an eyewitness and a resident of Greater Noida, told The Hindu that he was on the opposite footpath shopping when he heard a loud sound and saw vehicles catch fire. “There was a lot of traffic, and the slow-moving vehicle in which the blast happened went up in flames, which led to several commercial taxis around it catching fire,” he said.
Soon enough, ambulances streamed into a nearby public hospital, carrying several injured people — the explosion has claimed the lives of eight people so far and another 20 are injured.
Meanwhile, Delhi Police Commissioner Satish Golcha said that a “slow-moving vehicle around 6:52 pm stopped at the red light outside Red Fort”. “An explosion happened in that vehicle, and due to the explosion, nearby vehicles were also damaged. All agencies, FSL, NIA, are here… Some people have died, and some have been injured in the incident we will update you with the exact figures shortly. The situation is being monitored,” he said.
The blast prompted a flood of reactions from within and outside the country. Prime Minister Narendra Modi said, “Condolences to those who have lost their loved ones in the blast in Delhi… May the injured recover at the earliest. Those affected are being assisted by authorities.”
A possible use of an IED
Following the blast, authorities from different investigating agencies are scouring the scene of the crime to ascertain the cause of the explosion. While they haven’t confirmed the cause, officials haven’t ruled out terror attack to be the reason.
Preliminary investigations suggest that an IED — improvised explosive device (IED) — was planted in the slow-moving car that eventually exploded.
Delhi Police sources were also quoted as telling News18 that there was no crater or flat spot at the site, suggesting that the car was slow-moving when the explosion happened.
Investigators have not found any signs of pellet injuries on the victims, though burn wounds have been observed on several. Forensic teams are examining the vehicle to determine the exact nature and source of the blast.
Officials have noted that traditionally blasts involving conventional explosives cause shrapnel injuries, but none were seen in those injured so far.
On Tuesday morning, however, some sources revealed that ammonium nitrate was found in the blast near Delhi’s Red Fort. This is the same chemical that was seized earlier on Monday in Faridabad , suggesting that the two incidents may be linked.
The slow-moving i20 car and the Pulwama link
While officials are still trying to determine the explosion in the car, one thing is certain — it was a Hyundai i20 that exploded on Monday, triggering panic and chaos in the capital.
According to investigating sources, the vehicle — with the number plate HR 26CE7674 — was stationed in the parking lot near the landmark for over three hours, entering at 3:19 pm and leaving around 6:30 pm.
An image shows the car entering the parking lot with the driver’s hand on the window. The driver of the car can be seen in another picture in which he appears to be wearing a blue and black T-shirt.
Sources have said that the car was also spotted in Delhi’s Darya Ganj, Red Fort area, Kashmere Gate, and near Sunehri Masjid.
The i20 car used in the Red Fort blast had multiple traffic challans, most of which were issued in the Delhi-NCR region. Records show that all the challans for the vehicle had been paid, reports India Today.
Authorities are now tracking down the owner of the car, with sources revealing that a resident of Jammu and Kashmir’s Pulwama bought the Hyundai i20, just weeks earlier, on October 29. In the hours following the blast, the police questioned a Gurugram resident under whose name the car was once registered. He revealed that he had sold it to someone else. Investigators said their probe led them to conclude the car changed hands more than once, eventually finding its way to the resident of Kashmir’s Pulwama.
The Print reports that investigators have now traced the white i20 to a Pulwama-based doctor, identified as Dr Umar Mohammed. Investigators reveal that Mohammed was part of the same terror module that was busted earlier in the day in Faridabad.
Sources say that Dr Umar Mohammed, who owned the car, reportedly panicked and triggered the blast near the Red Fort after investigators arrested two key members of the module — Dr Mujammil Shakeel and Dr Adil Rather — and seized 2,900 kg of suspected explosives in Haryana’s Faridabad.
As of now, investigators note that only one person, the key suspect, was in the car at the time of the explosion.
Security beefed up across country, probe still on
Investigators, who are still scouring the site for clues, have reportedly found some body parts inside the car that was used in the powerful explosion.
Meanwhile, several parts of the country are on high alert after the massive blast in Delhi. Haryana, Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Mumbai, Pune and Jammu have been put on alert. Moreover, following the deadly Red Fort Metro blast, airports across the country are on high alert. Security checks, surveillance, and patrols have been intensified, with bomb squads and sniffer dogs deployed. Passengers face stricter screening and possible flight delays amid tightened safety measures.
Akasa Air has asked passengers to reach airport at least three hours prior to departure due to enhanced security measures at all airports across India.
With inputs from agencies