By IANS,
Mumbai : At least three people were killed and 20 injured when a cooking gas cylinder exploded in Maharashtra’s Malegaon town Monday night, police said, asserting it was not a terrorist attack.
The cylinder went off in a crowded market near the Noorani Masjid in Malegaon, about 350 km from here, when the area was bustling with shoppers ahead of Eid ul Fitr, police said. The panic after the blast led to a stempede in which 60 people, including three policemen were injured, police said.
Maharashtra Home Minister R.R. Patil had earlier said the nature of the blast was not known and the police were investigating the matter. He said additional police forces were sent to the communal sensitive town, which had witnessed a bomb blast about two years ago.
Unconfirmed reports said police had to fire in the air to control the panicked crowd.
The injured were rushed to the hospital while the spot was cordonned off and police started their investigators.