At least eight dead in car explosion

At least eight people were killed and others injured in a car explosion near Delhi’s historic Red Fort, authorities said.

Delhi city police spokesperson Sanjay Tyagi confirmed the deaths to the BBC and said 20 other people were injured.

Police are investigating the cause of the explosion and “exploring all possibilities”, Mr Tyagi said.

Delhi Police Commissioner Satish Golcha told reporters that the incident occurred around 6:52 p.m. local time (1:52 p.m. GMT), when a slow-moving vehicle stopped at a red light before exploding, damaging nearby vehicles.

Mr Tyagi told the BBC the explosion occurred in a Hyundai i20 car which was moving and carrying three people at the time.

Mumbai, India’s financial capital, was put on alert, as was the state of Uttar Pradesh, which borders Delhi.

The blast occurred near a metro station close to the Red Fort, one of Delhi’s most prominent monuments.

The Mughal fortress, visited by thousands of tourists every year, was built in the 17th century and is where Indian prime ministers deliver their Independence Day speeches every year.

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi offered his condolences to those who lost loved ones in the blast.

Opposition leader Rahul Gandhi said in a statement that the news was “extremely heartbreaking.”

Federal Home Minister Amit Shah said teams from India’s National Security Guard and the National Investigation Agency were investigating the blast, along with forensic experts.

“We are exploring all possibilities and will conduct a thorough investigation, taking into account all possibilities. All options will be studied immediately and we will present the results to the public,” he added.

The minister, who visited the scene of the explosion and a nearby hospital, said a meeting involving senior officials would take place on Tuesday morning.

Security is being beefed up in “sensitive religious sites, vulnerable districts and border areas” in the northern state of Uttar Pradesh, according to senior police official Amitabh Yash, following the explosion in the neighboring city of Delhi.

Uttar Pradesh is home to famous sites such as the Taj Mahal and is a densely populated state.

Veeru Sindhi, a local businessman who was at the site at the time of the explosion, described scenes of devastation, with several bodies and vehicles engulfed in flames.

“I’m completely shaken by what I saw,” he told the BBC. “We tried to rescue people trapped inside the vehicles.”

An eyewitness described the aftermath of the explosion as chaotic and confusing.

He was a few hundred meters from the scene when he heard a loud explosion.

“It was like everything stopped for a few seconds before everyone started running in all directions,” he told the BBC.

He did not approach the site but could see mangled car parts on fire and residents trying to help the injured.

There was a heavy security presence at the blast site with personnel from the Uttar Pradesh Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS), National Security Guard (NSG) and Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF). Armed officers were seen heading towards the area as investigations continue.

Additional reporting by Charlotte Scarr and Dilnawaz Pasha.