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11 killed as bomb rips through train in Punjab

Mukhtar Ahmad in Srinagar

At least 11 persons were killed and 50 others were seriously injured when a massive bomb explosion ripped through a coach of the Delhi-bound Pooja Express at Chakibank in Punjab late this evening.

A senior officer of the Jammu and Kashmir police told rediff.com on phone from Jammu that police and medical teams had rushed to the spot near the state's border with Punjab.

The officer said the Delhi-bound train left Jammu at 1800 IST. The bomb exploded when the train reached Chakibank.

The train derailed under the impact of the blast. One coach of the train was extensively damaged, and the officer warned that the toll could rise.

Six passengers died on the spot. Their bodies were mutilated beyond recognition. The condition of several of the injured was stated to be critical.

The J&K police were trying to shift the injured persons to hospitals in Pathankot and Jammu, but sources said it would be a few hours before medical aid could reach them.

The rail authorities in Jammu have diverted all outgoing trains via Amritsar following the blast.

Anxious relatives late tonight thronged the railway station at Jammu to know the latest about their near and dear ones.

Sources said that according to reports received from Chakibank, some of the injured passengers belonged to Jammu.

Police blamed extremists for the blast, though no group has yet owned responsibility. Earlier also, militants have bombed railway tracks and trains in Jammu and Kashmir, resulting in casualties.

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