Four blasts greet India’s new home minister

MUMBAI — Four low-intensity blasts hit the western Indian city of Pune Wednesday, injuring one person. The explosions came on the day when Sushilkumar Shinde took over the troubled home (interior) ministry of the country. Shinde was scheduled to be in the town Wednesday but canceled his visit at the last minute.

Pune police commissioner Gopal Rao Pol said a fifth explosive device was defused and added that the injured person was being questioned as a possible suspect.

Pune was the site of a major bombing in 2010 that killed 17 people, including a number of foreigners, in a restaurant popular with tourists.

Wednesday’s blasts, which went off in quick succession, targeted a bustling restaurant and shopping area in central Pune in the state of Maharashtra.

“The matter is under investigation and as and when it is completed, I will let you know,” Shinde told reporters in New Delhi.

Police commissioner Pol sought to play down the severity of the incident, suggesting the size of the blasts did not indicate a full-scale terror attack. “These were minor explosions,” he told the NDTV news channel. — AFP