NEW DELHI, Apr 1: The police is looking for two suspects who allegedly threw a grenade outside the BJP office in Chandigarh on Wednesday. A man was seen pulling the pin out of a grenade and throwing it near the Punjab BJP’s office in Sector 37 in a self-filmed video. The grenade landed near a scooter and exploded.
The police said the two suspects had arrived on a motorcycle. The video showed one of the suspects running away after throwing the grenade. The two attackers escaped on their bike after the blast, the police said. Their faces have been captured on CCTV, and a search is underway for them, they said.
The Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) reached the spot and launched a probe. A forensic examination was conducted as well. Central intelligence agencies have also been placed on high alert following the attack. Sources suggest the grenade was made using gunpowder.
Reacting to the grenade attack, Punjab BJP chief Sunil Jakhar flagged an attempt to disrupt the communal harmony. “First, there have been continuous grenade attacks on police stations in Punjab; then recently, a statue of Babasaheb Dr BR Ambedkar was vandalized in Hoshiarpur; and today, BJP state-level office in Chandigarh was attacked. This series of incidents indicates attempts to disrupt the communal harmony of the state,” he said.
“At the same time, the government of this border state has proven unsuccessful in preventing these attacks. As a result, the deteriorating law and order situation in Punjab is now beginning to affect Chandigarh as well. However, no matter how much separatist forces try, they will not be able to break the communal unity of Punjab,” Jakhar added.
A possible Khalistani angle is also being probed in the attack, sources said, pointing to the Khalistani outfits consistently targeting government infrastructure, BJP and RSS offices, and Hindu organisation leaders in Punjab since 2024. During 2024-25, US-based Khalistani terrorist Happy Passian was alone behind 20 such attacks, which targeted police stations and outposts. Recently, seven persons were also arrested in Mohali for trying to destabilise the law-and-order situation at the behest of Pakistan.
(Manas Dasgupta)
