A cadre of Netra Bikram Chand led CPN has been arrested in connection to the bomb blast in the house of former communication minister Gokul Baskota in Lokanthali Wednesday.
One Dev Gurung has been arrested from the squatter settlement in Bhaktapur by the Metropolitan Police Crime Division. Police have claimed that those involved in the blast have already been identified and search is on for them.
The Chand-led CPN, meanwhile, has taken responsibility for the blast. Pamphlets left at the site has listed 10 points including allegations of Baskota demanding bribe for different projects, and banning the Chand-led party among others.
The pressure cooker bomb was detonated with remote control.
Police personnel involved in investigation of the explosion have found the pressure cooker at the site and the remote controller around 500 meters away.
The explosion occurred at the under-construction four-story house at 7:45 Wednesday morning. The bomb was kept inside the compound adjacent to the wall. Part of the wall has been destroyed by the explosion while the outer wall of the house has suffered minor damage.
Baskota was adding floors on his one-story building. He does not stay in the house now. He has been staying at the house of Prime Minister (PM) KP Sharma Oli in Balkot since he became minister.
Glass window panes in the neighboring houses have been smashed and a Maruti van (Ba 19 Cha 4781) parked nearby has been damaged by the explosion.
Baskota had resigned on February 20 after the audio tape purporting him to be bargaining for commission in procurement of security printing press was made public.
