Bomb in bakery kills 9, including 1 foreigner, near famed ashram in western India

Bomb at Indian bakery kills 9, injures 57

NEW DELHI — A minister says the deadly explosion in a bakery near a meditation center in western India was caused by a bomb. Nine people have been killed and 57 others injured.

Home Minister Palaniappan Chidambaram says the bomb was lying in an unattended bag.

He told reporters Sunday that one foreigner was among the nine killed, but his nationality was unknown.

Saturday’s incident was the first major terror attack in India since the militant assault on Mumbai in November 2008.

Earlier, officials said it appeared that a waiter noticed an unattended package in the bakery and tried to open it when the blast took place.

The bakery lies close to the Osho Ashram frequented by foreigners.

THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. Check back soon for further information. AP’s earlier story is below.

NEW DELHI (AP) — An apparent bomb tore through a crowded bakery popular with foreigners in western India, killing nine people and wounding 53 in what may be the first terrorist attack in the country since the 2008 Mumbai massacre.

The blast Saturday in the city of Pune, 125 miles (200 kilometers) southeast of Mumbai, threatened to damage new efforts to reduce tensions between India and Pakistan, with Hindu nationalist leaders already placing the blame for the explosion at India’s Muslim neighbor.

“All the information available to us at the moment points to a plot to explode a device in a place that is frequented by foreigners as well as Indians,” Home Minister Palaniappan Chidambaram told reporters.

Home Secretary G.K. Pillai also said the 7:30 p.m. blast at the German Bakery, near the Osho Ashram, a renowned meditation center, was likely caused by a bomb.

If confirmed, it would be the first terrorist strike in India since 10 Pakistan-based gunmen rampaged through hotels and a train station in the financial hub of Mumbai for 60 hours in November 2008, killing 166 people.

Pune’s Police Commissioner Rajendra Sonawane said nine people were killed Saturday. State Home Minister R.R. Patil said 53 were wounded.

“It appears that an unattended package was noticed in the bakery by one of the waiters who apparently attempted to open the package when the blast took place,” Pillai told reporters.

The building and nearby shops were badly damaged and splattered with thick patches of blood and several limbs. “I came running to the bakery after hearing the explosion. I found people lying all over the place,” said Abba More, who lives nearby.

One foreigner was among those killed and another was wounded in the blast, he said, adding their nationalities were not immediately known.

The blast came as ties between India and archrival Pakistan appeared to be warming. The two countries agreed to hold talks in New Delhi on Feb. 25, their first formal negotiations since the Mumbai attacks.

Asked whether the explosion was linked to the India-Pakistan talks, Pillai said: “Forensic investigations have just begun. Till they are completed, we will not know who is (involved).”

But Gopinath Munde, a senior Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party leader, asserted, “This again is an attack from Pakistan.”