A powerful bomb exploded Wednesday near the office of a political party in the southern Indian city of Bangalore, injuring at least 16 people, police said. The bomb was planted in a motorcycle parked about 100 meters (yards) from the office of the Bharatiya Janata Party in Bangalore's Malleshwaram neighborhood, said Lalrokhuma Pachau, director general of police in Karnataka state, of which Bangalore is the capital. The injured were being treated at nearby hospitals, where doctors said the condition of two people was serious, Pachau said. Ten of the injured were policemen who were on duty near the party office, he was quoted as saying by the Associated Press. Scores of party supporters were in the building at the time of the explosion, with elections to the Karnataka assembly due to be held early next month.
