AMRITSAR: A blast rocked Thakurdwara temple in Amritsar’s Khandwala early Saturday after two attackers on a bike hurled an explosive device at the building. The explosion occurred around 12.35am, damaging a portion of the Vaishnava shrine dedicated to Laddoo Gopal, a form of Krishna. No injuries were reported.
The attack follows a series of similar explosions in Punjab’s border areas. Since Nov 2024, at least 12 grenade attacks have targeted police stations and cops, but this marks the first such assault on a temple.
CCTV footage captured the two assailants carrying a flag before they threw the object at the temple’s first floor and escaped. The temple priest was sleeping inside and narrowly escaped harm.
Punjab CM Bhagwant Mann blamed the attack on “fissiparous forces” trying to disrupt peace, while the opposition accused his govt of failing to maintain law and order.
Amritsar police commissioner Gurpreet Bhullar said Pakistani spy agency ISI could be involved, citing its alleged role in previous attacks in the region. “ISI often exploits economically disadvantaged youth for such activities,” he said, adding that police are actively tracking the assailants on the basis of CCTV footage.
He declined to disclose details about the flag seen in the footage, while assuring residents that security personnel had been deployed around the temple to restore confidence.
Opposition parties seized on the blast as evidence of a deteriorating security situation under AAP govt. BJP’s Tarun Chugh called for a CBI probe. “First police stations were targeted, now temples. This is a deliberate attempt to create social divisions,” Chugh said, criticising the AAP govt for what he called prioritising party politics over security.
Congress’s Partap Singh Bajwa demanded CM Mann’s resignation, accusing him of failing to protect the state. “This is the 13th such attack in Punjab’s border belt. If ISI is behind this, it exposes an intelligence failure,” Bajwa said.
State Congress chief Amrinder Raja Warring accused Mann’s govt of downplaying the severity of the attack. “There is an atmosphere of fear in Punjab,” he said. “The people will reject any attempt to create division and unrest.”
SAD neta Daljit Singh Cheema condemned the blast, calling for a judicial inquiry. “Thirteen explosions in the region prove law and order has collapsed,” he said. “This appears to be part of a larger conspiracy to destabilise Punjab.”
