New Delhi, November 10, 2025: At least 10 people were dead and more than 30 others injured following a high-intensity explosion in a Hyundai i20 car near Gate No. 1 of Delhi's Red Fort Metro Station on Monday evening, sending shockwaves through one of the national capital's most crowded and historic areas, according to CNN.
The blast occurred at about 6:42 PM near the traffic signal close to the Lal Qila Metro Station gate 1, in the Chandni Chowk area.
Firefighters and emergency services rushed to the scene. Fire tenders extinguished a blaze that engulfed the exploded vehicle and several nearby parked vehicles. Six cars and three auto-rickshaws were damaged in the explosion. Multiple casualties were taken to Lok Nayak Jai Prakash (LNJP) Hospital, where fatalities were confirmed and injured patients received urgent care. Hospital officials stated that many victims were brought dead, while several remain critical.
Chief Minister Rekha Gupta and Union Home Minister Amit Shah both visited LNJP Hospital late Monday night. Gupta appealed to Delhiites to avoid rumours and maintain peace, assuring that authorities are working round the clock to ensure safety.
The Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC) temporarily restricted access to certain gates near the scene while regular metro services across the wider network continued to operate.
Union Home Minister Amit Shah said the vehicle involved was a Hyundai i20 and that investigators would probe all possible angles. Teams from the Delhi Police, National Investigation Agency (NIA), National Security Guard (NSG), and forensic units are leading the investigation.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi took stock of the situation and was briefed by central and state officials. All police units across Delhi were placed on high alert, and security was intensified across metro stations, railway hubs, and religious sites in Delhi and neighbouring states.
According to India Today, the owner of the i20 car and several persons linked to the vehicle have been detained or are being questioned. Four doctors from Jammu and Kashmir, already arrested in a separate counter-terror probe, are also being interrogated for possible connections to the explosion.
Delhi Police Commissioner Satish Golcha said a slow-moving vehicle had come to a stop at a red light around 6:42 PM when the explosion occurred. The blast was powerful enough to shatter nearby windowpanes and send debris across a 50-metre radius.
Authorities continue to caution that early information may change as forensic analysis and intelligence review progress.
Eyewitnesses described scenes of horror and panic. Local resident Rajdhar Pandey told INA, “I saw the flames from my house and then came down to see what had happened. There was a loud explosion.”
Another witness reported seeing body parts scattered on the road, with several vehicles damaged in the blast. “It felt as if we were all going to die,” said a shopkeeper.
Eyewitnesses told Hindustan Times that the “sky turned red” from the fire and smoke, and that “people were screaming and running in all directions.” Nearby shopkeepers shut their stores immediately as police cordoned off the area.
Sanjay Bhargava, president of the Chandni Chowk Sarv Vyapar Mandal, described the aftermath: “All shops have now been closed. The roads are jam-packed, and there’s panic among shoppers.”
Chandni Chowk market will remain closed on Tuesday as authorities continue investigations and security checks in the area.
The explosion occurred just one day after reporting of a separate counter-terror operation in Faridabad, Haryana, where police recovered a large quantity of suspected ammonium nitrate and arms from a rented house on November 9, 2025. Two doctors, Dr. Adil Ahmad Rather and Dr. Muzammil Shakeel, were arrested in that operation. News reports gave the quantity recovered as roughly 350 to 360 kilograms of suspected ammonium nitrate along with weapons and other material including timers, assault rifles, and bomb-making materials.
According to India Today, investigators are now examining whether the Faridabad explosives were intended for use in the Delhi attack. However, officials have stressed that there is no direct confirmation yet linking the two incidents.
Forensic tests on residue from the Red Fort blast site are being cross-matched with samples seized in Faridabad to verify chemical similarities.
Survivors of explosions and mass‑casualty incidents can experience a wide range of emotional and psychological reactions including shock, grief, anxiety, and acute stress. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), post‑traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) may manifest through reliving the trauma via flashbacks or nightmares, avoiding reminders of the event, being constantly on edge or startled easily, and having difficulty sleeping. 1
Research shows that after terrorist attacks and other large‑scale traumatic events the prevalence of PTSD, major depressive disorder (MDD) and anxiety disorders rises significantly. Risk factors include female gender, lower socioeconomic status, pre‑existing mental‑health conditions, higher level of exposure to the violence, and lower availability of social support.
In the present incident, people in the immediate vicinity may be struggling not only with physical injuries but also with strong ongoing emotional responses. Children, bystanders and others who witness the aftermath or were nearby may develop persistent fear, survivor’s guilt, emotional numbness, or heightened sensitivity to triggers such as loud noises.
Psychologists also warn about vicarious trauma affecting those who were not physically present but repeatedly consumed graphic coverage of the event. Earlier in the year, during the Pahalgam Terror Attack, psychologist Khushboo Agarwal, EMDR Therapist and member of the EMDR Association India, explained on her LinkedIn post:
I noticed something familiar — not just in the survivors, but in the witnesses. The ones who watched from afar. The ones who kept reading, scrolling, feeling. As a psychologist, I often see this pattern after large-scale tragedies. That’s vicarious trauma. It happens when we absorb pain that isn’t directly ours — through the news, social media, or even conversations.Khushboo Agarwal, MSc Developmental Psychology and MA (Clinical Psychology)
Effective intervention strategies include early identification of distress, trauma-focused cognitive-behavioural therapy, eye movement desensitization and reprocessing where clinically appropriate, and community-based supports to reduce isolation and promote recovery. Rapid psychological first aid, clear public information, and easy access to mental-health services can reduce the risk of long-term problems. 2,3
References:
1. Rigutto, C., Sapara, A. O., & Agyapong, V. I. O. (2021). Anxiety, Depression and Posttraumatic Stress Disorder after Terrorist Attacks: A General Review of the Literature. Behavioral sciences (Basel, Switzerland), 11(10), 140. https://doi.org/10.3390/bs11100140
2. Jacobson, M. H., Norman, C., Nguyen, A., & Brackbill, R. M. (2018). Longitudinal determinants of depression among World Trade Center Health Registry enrollees, 14-15 years after the 9/11 attacks. Journal of affective disorders, 229, 483–490. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jad.2017.12.105
3. Durodié, B., & Wainwright, D. (2019). Terrorism and post-traumatic stress disorder: a historical review. The lancet. Psychiatry, 6(1), 61–71. https://doi.org/10.1016/S2215-0366(18)30335-3
(Rh/VK/MSM)
Edited by M Subha Maheswari