India Cinema Blast was "Terrorist" Attack, Police Say

October 15, 2007

Author: Staff Writer

Source: Yahoo! News

Wire Service: AFP

http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20071015/ts_afp/indiablastbomb

Indian police said on Monday that an explosion that killed six people and injured 32 in a packed cinema hall in northern India was a "terrorist" bombing.

Hundreds of people -- mainly poor migrant workers -- were crammed into the theatre in the industrial city of Ludhiana in Punjab state to watch Sunday's late-night screening of a new Bollywood comedy.

"It was a bomb blast. It is a terror act. We are trying to find out the exact nature of explosives used," said a senior police official on condition of anonymity.

Police have not named any suspect but a series of blasts across India in recent years have been blamed on Muslim extremists allegedly linked to Pakistan and Bangladesh.