One person succumbed to his injuries while 28 others were injured after a grenade blast rocked the busy SRTC bus stand in Jammu on Thursday.

The grenade reportedly went off under a bus, resulting in the shrapnel being contained to a smaller area. The injured were immediately rushed to the hospital.

"So far 28 persons were brought with splinter injuries. Three are critical, of whom two are being operated," Principal, Government Medical College (GMC) hospital, Sunanda Raina told PTI.

This is the third grenade attack by terrorists in Jammu bus stand since May last year, viewed by security agencies as an attempt to disturb communal harmony and peace in the city.

Inspector General of Police, Jammu, MK Sinha said preliminary investigation suggested that someone lobbed the grenade in the bus stand area around noon, causing the explosion.

The police have cordoned off the area and further investigation is underway.

Police parties along with sniffer dogs and forensic experts rushed to the spot and launched a search operation to nab the attacker, officials said, adding the operation was still going on when last reports were received.
However, no one was arrested in connection with the blast so far, they said.

The state has been on the edge since 40 CRPF jawans were killed in a suicide bomb attack carried out by the Pakistan-based Jaish-e-Mohammad terror group in Kashmir’s Pulwama district on February 14. Day after the terror attack, Jammu had witnessed bloody protests with agitators burning vehicles and vandalising shops.

Raising slogans against Pakistan and terrorists, protesters burnt tyres on roads. Demonstrators put up barricades demanding that the attacks be avenged. There was a complete shutdown in Jammu city, with no traffic on roads and all shops and markets closed. A curfew was imposed for nearly four days.

Two months ago, a similar blast had occurred at the main bus stand here. The grenade fell short of the target and exploded in the air, without causing any damage or casualty, an official had said.