Explosions, chaos at Modi rally venue

A couple of explosions today rocked the Gandhi Maidan in Patna minutes before Narendra Modi was to arrive there to address a rally, creating panic among the large number of people who had assembled for the event.

Plumes of smoke billowed from a couple of sites though there was no report of any casualty.

Chaos prevailed on the ground as the explosion triggered panic among people, especially as a crude bomb blast had gone off just hours before at the Patna Railway station, leaving one persons injured.

The bomb exploded near the door of a newly created toilet on platform number 10 of Patna junction in which one person was injured, Railway and GRP officials said.

The railway station is barely two kilometers from Gandhi Maidan, venue of the 'Hoonkar rally' to be addressed by BJP's Prime Ministerial candidate Modi.

The injured person who was inside the toilet was first taken to the railway hospital and later rushed to Patna Medical College and Hospital (PMCH), R K Singh, spokesman of Danapur Railway division said.

Immediatly after the blast, bomb disposal personnel came to the spot and recovered two crude bombs, Railway Superintendent of Police Upendra Kumar Sinha said.

All the 11 trains booked by BJP for the rally had arrived much before the blast, Station Manager of Patna Junction Raju Kumar said.

Patna City SP Jaykant said that security arrangements had been scaled up at the station.