Red Fort blast revives long-dead memories in Delhi

Delhi was jolted on Monday, 10 November, by its deadliest attack in more than a decade, after a powerful explosion near the Red Fort metro station killed at least eight people and left 24 injured.

The high-intensity blast incinerated multiple vehicles and triggered chaos in the crowded locality, which was packed with commuters and tourists. The injured were taken to LNJP Hospital, a few kilometres away.

For a city that has endured some of India’s most devastating terror strikes, the deafening boom felt like a grim echo from a traumatic past. Delhi’s monuments, markets and public spaces have repeatedly been the frontline of violence, each attack leaving indelible scars on its civic memory.

The capital’s vulnerability stretches back decades. In 1996, a bomb ripped through Lajpat Nagar market, killing 13 people. Just a year later, 1997 saw a chain of blasts across Sadar Bazaar, Karol Bagh, Chandni Chowk, Rani Bagh and even aboard a bus in Punjabi Bagh — attacks aimed squarely at the beating heart of the city’s marketplaces.

The Red Fort itself — now again in the headlines — has long been a symbolic target. In December 2000, militants opened fire inside the Mughal-era complex, killing two. A year later, the December 2001 Parliament attack placed Delhi at the centre of global attention, claiming nine security personnel and staff.

The years that followed were no less brutal. In 2005, coordinated explosions just two days before Diwali tore through Paharganj, Sarojini Nagar and a DTC bus in Govindpuri, killing over 67 and injuring more than 200. In 2008, five near-simultaneous blasts struck Connaught Place, Karol Bagh and Greater Kailash, killing over 20 people.

The capital’s last major terror strike before Monday was the 2011 Delhi High Court blast, which killed 15 and injured 79, after a briefcase bomb detonated at the court’s entrance.

Monday’s explosion near Red Fort has once again shattered Delhi’s uneasy calm — a stark reminder that the city’s long, painful history with terror is never too far behind.