Sacrilege, lynchings and blast: Ahead of polls, Punjab rocked by violence and volatility

A blast rocked the Ludhiana court complex in Punjab today, killing one and wounding four others.

In the countdown to the Punjab election early next year, a blast rocked the Ludhiana court complex, killing one and wounding four others on Thursday. The blast has sent shockwaves, with political parties calling it “sabotage”. The Union Home Ministry sought a detailed report on the incident as the Chief Minister and top officials rushed to the spot.

While National Investigation Agency (NIA) and National Security Guard (NSG) teams are joining in to probe the attack, the police suspect that the attacker may have died while assembling the bomb. The incident has put pressure not just on the security set up of the border state but also on the congress-led Charanjit Singh Channi government, just weeks before the assembly polls.