Amritsar:
A powerful explosion took place at a temple in Amritsar late Friday night, shattering window panes and damaging the structure’s walls. CCTV footage captured two unidentified individuals arriving on a motorcycle at the Thakur Dwara Temple in the Khandwala area, stopping briefly, and then throwing an explosive towards the temple before fleeing.
Amritsar Police Commissioner Gurpreet Singh Bhullar confirmed that the police were alerted to the attack at approximately 2 am by the temple’s priest. Senior officials, along with forensic teams, rushed to the site to collect evidence. Commissioner Bhullar suggested a possible link to Pakistan’s Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI).
“We got information at 2 am. We reached the spot right away. The forensic team was called. We checked the CCTV and spoke to the nearby people. The thing is that Pakistan’s ISI lures our youth into creating disturbances in Punjab. We will trace this case within days and take appropriate action. I warn the youth not to ruin their lives. We will catch the culprits soon,” he said.
The attack has triggered strong political reactions, with opposition parties and local leaders condemning the deteriorating law and order situation in the Aam Aadmi-Party-ruled Punjab.
The Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) termed the attack a “serious and sensitive incident” that has hurt the religious sentiments of the people.
“The SAD strongly condemned the incident of blast near Thakur Duar Mandir in Sri Amritsar. This is the 13th such blast in the area & is proof of complete collapse of law & order in the state. It is a serious & sensitive incident which has hurt the sentiments of the people. A high level judicial inquiry should be done to identify the culprits & to expose the conspiracy behind this incident,” read a party statement.
The SAD further alleged that Punjab was being deliberately destabilised, warning that “such experiments have proved dangerous in the past and are once again pushing Punjab in the wrong direction.”
BJP leader Ranveet Singh Bittu also criticised the Punjab government, stating, “I strongly condemn the bomb attack on Thakur Dwara temple, Khandwala in Amritsar. AAP government fails to check repeated incidents of blasts in border city. Deteriorating law and order in Punjab is a matter of serious concern.”
Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann acknowledged that there have been repeated attempts to disturb peace in the state but maintained that Punjab’s law and order remained intact compared to other states.
“There are always many attempts to disturb the peace in Punjab. Drugs, gangsters, and extortion are part of it, and there are attempts to show that Punjab has become a disturbed state. During the festival of Holi, in other states, the police had to use a lathi charge during processions. But such things do not happen in Punjab. The law and order situation in Punjab is good,” the Punjab Chief Minister said.
Further investigation into the case is underway, police said.