New Delhi:
It was business as usual for the residents and shop owners of
Mehrauli's ward number 8. But soon two men on a black bike
would turn the lazy Saturday afternoon into the most horrific
moment of their lives. The bikers dropped a packet and sped away
leaving behind a trail of destruction when their packet exploded.
For Sumit Arora from Mehrauli,
who was shopping a couple of shops away from the blast site, said,
2.01 pm, Saturday will be frozen in his memory. "I
remember because the shopkeeper delivering the goods asked me
the time. As I stepped out, a black bike sped past. Two persons,
both wearing black jeans and one with a blue shirt, came on the
bike from the Doodhwali Gali side and were going towards Jahaz
Mahal. They suddenly slowed down and seemed to drop a package
and drove away. A small boy picked up the packet and the next
second there was a blast. Both men were wearing helmets and the
man behind was wearing shades. I saw that because he turned around
as the packet 'fell' from his hand."
Mukesh Hans, owner of a paint and hardware shop that was right
next to where the blast happened, was sitting in his shop at 2
pm. "There was a deafening sound and everything became
dark. I came out and saw complete chaos with injured people on
the street and blood everywhere. There were at least 12 persons
being sent to the hospital by the local people. As I stepped out
I also saw the body of a girl who was in her schooldress,"
he said.
Baldev Khattar, owner of Anisha Electronics in front of which
the blast took place, was also injured and taken to a nearby hospital.
His son Anuj, who had left the shop just five minutes before the
blast, spoke to his father just before he was taken into the operation
theatre. "He was sitting in the shop when the blast
took place. There was some commotion and suddenly a loud blast.
My uncle's shop is right next to ours and my father went
out to check. It was then that someone pointed out that my father
had also sustained injuries. The skin on his thigh had ripped
open and he had blood running down from his back. The impact of
the blast had numbed him," he said.
Sanjay Khattar of DP Musical, part of Baldev Khattar's
family, added that tens of shops on the stretch had been damaged
as items on display were completely damaged by the impact of the
blast.
His relative, B Khattar, another shopowner on this congested
stretch said that the noise of the blast had been so loud that
he has almost lost his hearing. "Everything happened
within seconds. We will hold a meeting to decide whether we will
open our shops on Sunday or not," he said.
Ketan Kumar (18), who was playing cricket with his friends at
Sarai market, suddenly heard the loud explosion and rushed only
to find a thick layer of smoke in the area. "When
the smoke cleared, I saw that there were many people lying bleeding
on the road and needed help. I, along with my maternal uncle,
Khan Chand (51), started helping people. I put at least 10-12
people in the ambulance," said Ketan.
Col M L Manchanda, whose house is just opposite the blast side,
said he heard a loud explosion outside and thick smoke filled
his house. "I could make out it was a chemical explosive
from the smell that engulfed the locality. We opened the door
to find three men lying in a pool of blood," Manchanda
said.
The blast also had shaken up the small children in the locality.
"I had gone to get eggs when I came to know that
there was a blast near my house. When I returned home, I was told
that my brother had been taken to the hospital. I have heard he
received head injury, but none is telling me anything more,"
said Subha, a resident of the area.
Police said the bomb was made from crude material and was of
low intensity. The samples collected from the site have been sent
for forensic examination. The explosives used in the bomb could
be ammonium nitrate or potassium chlorate with an Improvised Explosive
Device (IED). Joint Commissioner (Southern Range) Ajay Kashyap
said, "We have sent the samples for examination and
the nature of explosives will be known only after the reports
are received."
Rajesh Khattar, who owns a shop selling electronic goods in the
area, saw Santosh running after the bike. "Suddenly,
there was a loud explosion and the glass facades of some shops
shattered. The impact of the explosion was such that the windowpanes
of houses on the second floor also broke and several people were
injured by the flying glass shards. "I saw four people
lying on the road in a pool of blood. We took them to hospital
and informed the police," he recalled with a shudder.
The crude bomb contained 2 inch long nails, which caused the maximum
damage.
The market where the bomb blast took place is several decades
old and the passage connecting the market to Qutab bus stand is
hardly 15 feet wide with houses on both sides.
Source: The Times of India
