in Lucknow was caught on camera.
* Bomb Blast At Lucknow Court: Condemning the breach of
security, several angry lawyers gathered outside the court after
the incident.
At least two lawyers were injured when a crude bomb exploded at
a court in Lucknow this morning. The bomb – thrown at the chamber
of lawyers – is believed to have targeted a senior member of
Lucknow Bar Association.
The explosion took place at session court, about a kilometre
from the Uttar Pradesh Vidhan Sabha. At least three crude bombs
were recovered after the explosion, eyewitnesses said.
Sanjeev Lodhi, joint secretary of the Lucknow Bar Association,
claimed about ten men targeted him but he escaped unhurt. He blamed
another lawyer – Jitu Yadav – for the attack. Mr Yadav, Lucknow Bar
Association’s general secretary, denied any role in the incident
while speaking to NDTV.
A CCTV footage shows two groups clashing with each other and
lawyers running away as the bomb explodes.
Condemning the breach of security at the court, several angry
lawyers gathered outside the court after the incident.
“How did these unknown men (who threw crude bomb) enter the
court premises? This is a breach of security. A few of my
colleagues were injured. I escaped unhurt,” Mr Lodhi said.
“Strict action should be taken or incidents like these will
repeat,” he said, urging others around him to shout the slogan:
“Long live lawyers’ unity”.
Bomb disposal and dog squads were rushed to the site of the
blast.
Senior police officer Naveen Arora said Mr Lodhi has filed a
complaint against Mr Yadav and three others, alleging that he was
attacked with crude bombs. “Two live crude bombs have been
recovered from the site. In the investigations so far, no one has
heard the sound of bomb blast and Sanjeev Kumar Lodhi has also not
suffered any injury,” Mr Arora said.
“Investigations are on and it appears to be a case of mutual
rivalry between two groups of lawyers,” he added.
Last month, a protest was held by lawyers over rise in attacks
against them across the state. The Bar Council of Uttar Pradesh had
asked bar associations to join the protest, urging the state
government to pass legislation to protect lawyers.
On January 7, a 32-year-old lawyer, Shekhar Tripathi, was beaten
to death with sticks by five men in Lucknow, triggering anger among
his colleagues who protested against his death at the district
collectorate.
On December 17, a man was killed and two policemen were injured
when unidentified men opened fire at a court in Bijnore.