NEW DELHI: The high intensity explosion in a car killing eight people and injuring 20 people at Red Fort in Delhi has sent intelligence and security agencies in a tizzy as no “clear material evidence of bomb like shrapnel” has been recovered from the site so far. However, the impact of the blast suggests that it might have been a terror attack.

Following the explosion, a nationwide alert was sounded, leading to enhanced security arrangements in crowded areas.

The intelligence agencies have not ruled out the possibility of a terror attack and are probing all angles, including the potential role of Pakistan-based terror module Jaish-e-Mohammad (JeM) and Ansar Ghazwat-ul-Hind. The agencies said that they had alerted the state law enforcement of a possible terror attack in Delhi by Pakistan based terror outfits, prior to the blast.

The blast took place a day after a joint operation of the J&K and Haryana Police recovered 300 kg of explosives, and other suspicious material from a rented accommodation barely 40 km from the blast site at Dhauj village in Haryana’s Faridabad. Whether the two incidents are linked, remains under investigation.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi has been personally monitoring the situation. Union Home Minister Amit Shah visited Lok Nayak Hospital and the blast site and held a meeting with Delhi Police Chief Satish Golcha and other senior officials to review the situation, assess casualties, and discuss the investigation.