A small bomb exploded in a crowded hardware and electronics market in the southern part of the Indian capital Saturday, killing one person and wounding at least 18 others. The explosion took place around 2:15 p.m. in a neighborhood where both Hindus and Muslims live and near a historic 12th century stone minaret. No group has asserted responsibility for the attack, which came two weeks after a series of bombings ripped through the capital, killing 21 people.
Police said two men on a black motorcycle dropped a plastic bag containing a lunch box and sped away. Inside the lunch box was a crude, low-intensity bomb, they said. "The bag was picked up by a young boy and it exploded. And the boy lost his life," said Y.S. Dadwal, the city's police commissioner.
Sanjay Dhingra, who runs a kitchenware store in the area, said the boy was standing in the street watching television. "When he saw the men on the bike, he called out, 'Uncle, you have left your bag behind' and picked up the bag," said Dhingra, whose clothes were stained with blood from helping the injured. "Then the explosion took place. We heard a loud bomb and everything went black for a moment. The boy died right there."
A spokesman at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences trauma care center said that seven of the injured were in critical condition.