Five low-intensity blasts rocked Pune on Wednesday evening.
According to reports, a sixth explosive was defused by security officials. Two persons sustained minor injuries in the explosions, police said. They added that it did not appear to be a “terrorist attack” but carried out by a local tailor. The first three explosions occurred in quick succession at about 7.30 pm in and around the city’s Jungli Maharaj Road. Even though police sprung into action, reports of the remaining two blasts began pouring in. Two more suspicious objects were found in a village in Sangli district.
Incidentally, freshly-appointed Union Home Minister Sushil Kumar Shinde was scheduled to visit the city in the evening. However, Shinde had cancelled his visit and it is not known whether he did so after learning about the blasts. Though the blast sites are densely-populated areas with heavy traffic in mornings and evenings, due to the low intensity of the explosions, the damage done was minimal.
The three blast sites include a Dena Bank branch, Bal Gandharva auditorium and a McDonalds food joint, while the fourth blast occurred at Garware Chowk. At the first site, the explosive was placed in a cycle basket. An explosive in a dustbin near the McDonald’s joint triggered the blast there.
The fifth blast took place on Karve Road about 1 km from the site of the first three blasts. Though there were reports of a sixth bomb located near Kalmadi Petrol Pump, where it had been detonated under supervision of the bomb disposal squad, authorities did not reveal any details about the same.
One of the victims has been identified as Dayanand Patil and has been rushed to the Sasoon Government Hospital, while the identity of the second injured person is yet to be ascertained.