The crowded market where the blast occurred on Friday evening is close to the headquarters of the Northeast Frontier Railway, and about two kms away from Bhootnath, one of the sites of the January 1 blasts.

The police have so far arrested 10 persons in connection with the January 1 blasts, which includes one Sanjib Talukdar who confessed to having planted the bomb at Bhootnath on that day.

Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi strongly condemned the bomb blast. "The blast engineered by extremist elements is a heinous act committed on innocent people. It is a cowardly act that needs to be highly condemned by one and all," an official press release quoting him said. The government would leave no stone unturned to nab those behind the blast, Gogoi added.