Punjab BJP working president visits blast site outside party office in Chandigarh
BJP national spokesperson RP Singh said the fact that the Punjab BJP working president had just left the office for Delhi earlier that morning indicated that he could have been the target
Punjab BJP working president Ashwani Sharma on Thursday visited the site of the blast outside the party's headquarters here, a day after the incident triggered panic in the area.
The explosion occurred around 5 pm on Wednesday when a suspected crude explosive device was hurled near the office, officials said. No casualties were reported.
Police cordoned off the area and deployed personnel in the area, while a team of the National Investigation Agency (NIA) inspected the site to investigate the explosion.
Sharma, an MLA from Pathankot, reached the Punjab BJP office in the morning and reviewed the situation.
An unverified video that surfaced on social media on Wednesday evening shows a man pulling the pin from a blue-coloured grenade and throwing it, while another person records the act. The duo is then seen fleeing moments before the blast.
Their faces were not visible in the 10-second video, the veracity of which is yet to be ascertained. CCTV camera footage also showed the suspects running across the road after the explosion.
In a separate unverified social media post, a person identified as Sukhjinder Singh Babbar claimed responsibility for the alleged grenade attack.
BJP national spokesperson RP Singh termed the incident "shocking" and said the fact that the Punjab BJP working president had just left the office for Delhi earlier that morning indicates that he could have been the target.
"What makes this even more serious is that @AshwaniSBJP (Ashwani Sharma), the state BJP Working President, had been present at the same office for the last two days and had just left for Delhi for a political programme.
"Just 15 days ago, he was cautioned by the SSP of Pathankot to suspend his morning walks due to a specific threat perception. Whether there is any link between that warning and today's blast is a matter for investigation, but the coincidence cannot be ignored," the BJP leader said on X on Wednesday.
Singh said the incident raises serious questions about security, Intelligence coordination, and the law and order situation in Punjab, calling for swift action against those responsible.
"Those responsible must be identified and brought to justice at the earliest. There can be zero tolerance for such acts of terror," he said.
Sharma had departed for Delhi at 6 am on Wednesday to attend a party event in the national capital, where senior advocate and former AAP MLA HS Phoolka joined the BJP.
Punjab BJP chief Sunil Jakhar described the incident as an "attack" on the party office and linked it to a series of recent disturbances in the state.
"First, there were continuous grenade attacks on police stations in Punjab; then recently, a statue of Babasaheb Dr BR Ambedkar was vandalised in Hoshiarpur; and today, the BJP state-level office in Chandigarh was attacked," Jakhar had said on Wednesday.
These incidents indicate that attempts are being made to disrupt the state's communal harmony, he had said.
Several political leaders, including Punjab Congress chief Amrinder Singh Raja Warring, leader of opposition Partap Singh Bajwa and Akali leader Bikram Singh Majithia, condemned the blast.
