A powerful car explosion near Delhi’s historic Red Fort on Monday evening has claimed 13 lives and left more than 20 people injured, prompting the Union Home Ministry to step up security across the national capital and neighbouring states.
The blast occurred on Netaji Subhash Marg, close to Lal Qila Metro Station, around 6:45 pm on Monday. According to the police, a white Hyundai i20 car suddenly went up in flames near a traffic signal. The explosion was so strong that it damaged several vehicles parked nearby and scattered debris across the road.
Soon after the incident, security and emergency teams rushed to the spot. The Delhi Fire Service deployed multiple fire tenders, and forensic experts arrived to collect samples and inspect the wreckage. 
Authorities have shut the Red Fort for visitors for the next three days as a precautionary measure. The Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC) also announced the closure of Lal Qila Metro Station citing security reasons. Traffic restrictions have been imposed on key routes around the Red Fort and Chandni Chowk areas to ensure public safety.
The Delhi Police have registered a case under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA) and sections of the Explosives Act and Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita. Officials said the case has been handed over to the Special Cell and that every possible angle is being investigated.
Senior police officers said the car used in the blast is suspected to have ties to a terror module recently busted in Faridabad, where a large quantity of explosives was seized. Preliminary investigation has revealed that the car’s driver was Dr. Umar Un Nabi, a resident of Pulwama, Jammu and Kashmir.
According to CCTV footage obtained by the police, Dr. Umar was seen driving the car shortly before the explosion. He was reportedly in contact with two other doctors from Jammu and Kashmir who were earlier arrested in a terror-related case. Investigators believe Dr. Umar may have been carrying explosive material when the car detonated.
The white Hyundai i20, police sources said, was parked for nearly two hours at the Sunehri Masjid parking lot before the blast.
Among the deceased are two men from Amroha district in Uttar Pradesh, identified as Lokesh Agarwal, a fertilizer trader, and his friend Ashok, a Delhi resident. Lokesh had travelled to Delhi to visit a relative admitted at Sir Ganga Ram Hospital and was returning home after meeting Ashok near the Red Fort Metro Station.
Their families are in deep shock. “We cannot believe what happened. He had just called to say he was leaving for home,” a relative of Lokesh said. Police officials confirmed that both men died on the spot due to the intensity of the explosion.
