Seven killed, 20 injured in ULFA bomb blast

GUWAHATI: Seven persons were killed and 20 others injured in a powerful bomb blast by the ULFA in Guwahati's Athgaon area on Saturday triggering public protest there and in nearby commercial Fancy Bazar.

City Senior Superintendent of Police SN Singh said that the bomb planted in a rickshaw exploded at around 10.45 am near the Marwari Maternity Hospital in Athgaon where shoppers were going about their business.

Stating that some of the victims died on the spot while others on way to hospital, Singh said, the injured were admitted to various hospitals in the city.

Utter chaos and confusion prevailed as people attempted to flee. Police cordoned off the area and the injured were being rescued, Singh said.

The blast triggered angry protests in the area and in nearby Fancy Bazar, the commercial hub of the N-E region. Local people took to the streets in protest against the repeated blasts in their area asking  shopkeepers to down their shutters.