Punjab Blasts Near Security Sites Spark AAP-BJP Row

Twin low-intensity blasts near security installations in Jalandhar and Amritsar on Tuesday night triggered a sharp political exchange between Punjab's ruling Aam Aadmi Party and the opposition Bharatiya Janata Party, with each side blaming the other amid ongoing investigations.

The first explosion occurred around 8 p.m. outside the Border Security Force Punjab Frontier headquarters in Jalandhar, where a parked scooter caught fire, scattering debris and causing panic among bystanders. No injuries were reported. Hours later, at approximately 10:50 p.m., a second blast took place in the Khasa area of Amritsar, near an army cantonment and BSF facilities about 15 kilometers from the Attari-Wagah border. Police, army personnel, bomb disposal squads and forensic teams responded immediately to both sites, collecting evidence and reviewing CCTV footage. Officials described the incidents as minor, with no casualties, and said probes were underway to determine the causes.

Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann, from the AAP, labeled the blasts part of a strategy by the BJP to instill fear ahead of next year's state assembly elections. "BJP gets votes by spreading violence and fear among...