Amritsar temple blast: Attack caught on CCTV, opposition says 'atmosphere of fear in Punjab'

NEW DELHI: A blast took place outside a temple in Amritsar around midnight when a person on a motorcycle threw an explosive device at it. The

explosion

damaged a part of the wall and shattered window panels, officials said on Saturday. No injuries were reported, however.
In the past four months, several explosions have targeted police posts in Punjab. However, this is the first such attack on a temple. Opposition parties criticized the

AAP government

, saying the incident showed a decline in law and order.
Amritsar police commissioner Gurpreet Singh Bhullar said the police received information about the incident at around 2 am on Saturday from the temple priest."We got information at 2 am and rushed to the spot right away. A 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," Commissioner Bhullar said.

As per some reports, the temple priest was asleep inside at the time but managed to escape unharmed.
CCTV footage showed two unidentified individuals arriving on a motorcycle. After stopping for a few seconds, one of them threw an explosive device at the temple before they fled the scene.
Bhullar said that police teams were tracking the suspects and expected to arrest them soon. "Our teams are following them. Like we had traced earlier incidents, this incident will also be traced," he said.
A forensic team collected samples from the site to determine the type of explosive used.

"I want to warn those behind this incident that they will face strict action," Bhullar said.
Punjab chief minister Bhagwant Mann said that attempts have been made from time to time to disturb Punjab, but the state police have acted quickly against such incidents.
"Punjab is completely safe in terms of law and order," he told reporters.

Opposition parties target AAP government

However, the blast led to criticism from opposition parties, including the Congress, BJP, and Shiromani Akali Dal.
Union minister Ravneet Singh Bittu condemned the attack, calling it a failure of the AAP government.
"I strongly condemn the bomb attack on Thakur Dwara temple, Khandwala, in Amritsar. AAP government fails to check repeated incidents of blasts in the border city. Deteriorating

law and order in Punjab

is a matter of serious concern," he posted on X.

Punjab Congress chief Amrinder Singh Raja Warring also criticized the government, pointing out that this time a temple was targeted.
"Yet another grenade attack in Amritsar, this time targeting a temple in the Khandwala area. There is an atmosphere of fear prevailing in Punjab, and people are genuinely feeling insecure. It's high time the @AAPPunjab government wakes up from its deep slumber and takes action," Warring posted on X.
BJP National Spokesperson Shehzad Poonawalla blamed the AAP government, saying the law and order situation had worsened.
Speaking to news agency ANI, he said, "Ever since Aam Aadmi Party's government came to power, law and order situation has become terrible.All these grenade attacks have happened in a chained way, with some happening on police stations as well. Whereas, the police is busy with the protection of Arvind Kejriwal."

Senior Akali leader Bikram Singh Majithia also called it a "law and order failure."