News In Brief

April 5, 1984

Bomb in Punjab breaks uneasy Indian peace

Five people were wounded when a bomb exploded in India's tense Punjab State Wednesday night, the Press Trust of India (PTI) reported. A Sikh leader said suicide squads would attack unless remedial action was taken.

PTI quoted witnesses as saying the attack occurred in Moga town, about 40 miles from Amritsar.

Riots in the Sikh holy city of Amritsar Tuesday caused Prime Minister Indira Gandhi to give police forces sweeping new powers in the state bordering Pakistan. The authority allows security forces to search for and destroy arms caches, seize weapons and vehicles, shoot to kill rioters, and enter any place where extremists may be hiding.