Punjab CM calls for probe after rocket-propelled grenade hits police intelligence headquarters
According to officers present at the site, the lot number on the weapon suggested it was made in China.
Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann on Tuesday said that a rocket-propelled grenade attack on the state Police Intelligence Wing headquarters in Mohali will be investigated.
“Whoever tried to spoil the atmosphere of our Punjab will not be spared,” the chief minister wrote on Twitter.
The director general of police on Tuesday apprised Mann that a few suspects were taken into custody for further interrogation, according to the chief minister’s office, ANI reported.
The chief minister held a meeting with officials at 10 am on Tuesday to seek a report on the investigation so far.
On Monday around 7.45 pm, a missile weapon hit the building located in Sector 77 in Mohali, resulting in an explosion and destruction of windowpanes on one floor, PTI reported.
A rocket-propelled grenade is a shoulder-fired weapon that is portable and can be carried by an individual.
Punjab Director General of Police Viresh Kumar Bhawra, who was present at the spot, said that there were no casualties or injuries after the blast, reported The Indian Express. A wall of the building was damaged in the incident, he added.
“The RPG [rocket-propelled grenade] was fired at a distance from the main entrance by unidentified persons who are believed to have fled in a vehicle,” Bhawra said. “A car was spotted moving from the site the moment the RPG was fired.”
According to officers present at the site, the lot number on the weapon suggested it was made in China, reported The Indian Express. Following the explosion, the area was cordoned off and an alert was sounded.
Forensic teams were called in to investigate the site, the Mohali Police said in a statement. A quick reaction team of the Chandigarh Police was also deployed at the headquarters.
The building houses offices of senior police officers, including Inspector General-rank officials. A hospital, a school and an Army forces preparatory academy are located in the vicinity.
A first information report was filed on Monday night, a police official told PTI.
This development came days after an explosive device was recovered near Chandigarh’s Burail Jail on April 24, The Indian Express reported. The prison has around 1,000 inmates.
Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, whose Aam Aadmi Party is in power in Punjab, said it is a cowardly act and all the culprits will be punished severely.
Former Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh said he is shocked to hear about the blast. “This brazen attack on our police force is deeply concerning,” he wrote on Twitter. “I urge CM Bhagwant Mann to ensure perpetrators are brought to justice at the earliest.”
Former Punjab Home Minister and Congress MLA Sukhjinder Singh Randhawa urged the authorities to take stern action.
Meanwhile, the police in Amritsar have issued a read lert in the city. Police Commissioner Arun Pal Singh said that security has been increased at all vital areas of the city, ANI reported.