NIA investigating Nalagarh bomb blast: Himachal CM

Shimla, Jan 3 (PTI) The NIA is investigating the Nalagarh bomb blast in Solan district, and anything regarding the perpetrators of the incident will be known once the agency submits its report, said Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu on Saturday.

Talking to the media persons in Solan district, he said the state forensic experts have taken samples from the site, and CCTV footage of the area is also being scanned.

Since the matter is under investigation, anything regarding the perpetrators of the incident could be revealed only after the NIA submits its report, the CM said after laying the foundation stone of the Centre of Excellence for divyangjan (differently-abled) in Kandaghat.

Several Nalagarh residents woke up on January 1 to the sound of a blast that happened near a police station in Nalagarh in Solan district on Thursday. However, no casualty or injury to anyone was reported.

The impact of the blast that occurred in a lane was so strong that the windows of nearby buildings, including those of an Army canteen 40 metres away, cracked. The loud sound of the blast was heard from a distance of up to 400-500 metres, locals said.

Babbar Khalsa International and Punjab Sovereignty Alliance, in a social media post, which is yet to be verified, have claimed responsibility for the explosion in a social media post.

The post claimed that an improvised explosive device was used for the blast, and it was in retaliation for the Himachal Pradesh police "not taking action against smuggling of synthetic drugs manufactured in Himachal Pradesh into Punjab." It warned that if no action is taken in the matter, "IEDs would be planted in vehicles and headquarters of the police administration." A case has been registered at Nalagarh Police Station under BNS Sections 324(4) (mischief) and 125 (act so rashly or negligently as to endanger human life) and the Explosive Substances Act, the police had said.

Neighbouring Punjab have been witnessing similar attacks targeting police stations, with the state's DGP accusing Pakistan of attempting to disturb peace and claiming that the masterminds of such attacks were operating from North America, Europe, Southeast Asia and Gulf countries. PTI BPL AMJ AMJ