New Delhi high court blast kills 11

A POWERFUL bomb in a briefcase left outside the high court in New Delhi killed at least 11 people and injured 76 yesterday, in an attack authorities said had been claimed by a group linked to al-Qaeda.

The bomb dug a crater 3ft to 4ft deep near the counter where passes are issued for entry to the building before the main security checkpoint.

Authorities said they are investigating a claim of responsibility allegedly made by the Harkat-ul-Jihad Islami (HUJI) group – an al Qaeda affiliate with bases in Pakistan and Bangladesh.

It was headed by Ilyas Kashmiri, a senior al-Qaeda member who US authorities believe was recently killed in Pakistan.

Prime minister Manmohan Singh is on an official visit to Bangladesh, the first by an Indian premier in 12 years.

“I have heard the sad news from Delhi. This is a cowardly act of a terrorist nature, but we will deal with it. We will never succumb to the pressure of terrorism,” Mr Singh told reporters in Dhaka.

An e-mail sent by HUJI to TV stations demanded the repeal of the death sentence given to Afzal Guru, a Kashmiri man convicted over a 2001 attack on India’s parliament, and threatened to target other courts.