May 11, 2003	Sunday	Rabi-ul-Awwal 8, 1424

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HYDERABAD, May 10: Eleven persons were injured when an explosive device went off here at around 11:25am on Saturday in a bus at the Pathan Colony bus stop.

The explosion destroyed the bus and shattered the windowpanes of nearby vehicles and shops.

All the victims were rushed to a hospital, of which six— Azizur Rehman, Nazim Ali Chundrigar, Abdul Latif Bhatti, Moral Bhatti and his son, Ghulam Mohammad Bhatti, and Lateef Sandhelo— were discharged after being treated for minor injuries.

Whereas rest of the injured— Zaheer Qureshi, Gulzar Solangi, Atiq Solangi, Maula Bakhsh Rind and Soomar Soomro— were admitted to the hospital where doctors were quoted as saying that their condition was “stable”.

Eyewitnesses said a local bus (P-0188), which had come from Kandiaro, had made a brief stop at the bus stop to lift passengers.

Bus driver Shabbir Ahmed said he was present at a nearby hotel waiting for passengers at the time of blast as the vehicle was to leave for Kandiaro again. Earlier, he had taken diesel from a pump close to the bus stop where travellers had started boarding the vehicle.

The driver said that hardly 10 to 15 minutes had ticked by when a blast took place between seats No.4 & 5.

Experts said the explosive device was planted under the seats.

Senior government and police officials, including Sindh Minister for Zakat and Ushr, Auqaf, Religious and Minority Affairs Dr Irfan Gul Magsi and DIG (operations) Mushtaq Shah rushed to the scene of the incident.

The minister, terming the blast an act of terrorism, ordered strict action against those responsible for it.

Later, speaking to newsmen, the resident police officer blamed “RAW or Al Qaeda” for the explosion and ruled out its link with the rivalries between transporters.