Allahabad, April 24: Nine persons, including Samajwadi Party MLA Chandra Bhadra Singh alias Sonu Singh, his brother Yash Bhadra Singh alias Monu Singh, his associate Vijay Yadav — all accused in a murder case — three policemen and three advocates were injured when unidentified assailants hurled two crude bombs at the MLA at the district court building here on Thursday. Singh, who is MLA from Isauli in Sultanpur, his brother and Yadav are facing trial for the murder of Sant Gyaneshwar, a controversial godman, in a local court. Police believe that the followers of Sant Gyaneshwar, who was killed in Handia area of Allahabad in February 2006, carried out the attack.

Another advocate Triveni Prashad Jaiswal, who jumped from the second floor, too suffered serious injuries and was hospitalised in a critical condition. SI Yuvraj’s right leg was badly damaged. Advocate Udai Pratap Singh too suffered a serious injury on his hip. All six men were rushed to the nearby Tej Bahadur Sapru hospital. However, the MLA and his brother were treated at the SRN hospital of the M L Nehru Medical College, Allahabad. The assailants hurled the bombs from the second floor of the building when the MLA and his brother were returning from a hearing in the case in the court of the Additional District Judge-16 in police custody around noon.

The assailants escaped amid the chaos caused by the explosions. Later, an unexploded crude bomb was found on the second floor of the building. The police defused the bomb.

“I was talking to my client when I saw SP MLA and his brother, along with some cops and lawyers, coming from the court. The moment they reached near the PAC camp, a bomb exploded. Before anyone could realise what had happened, another bomb was hurled at them,” said Vijayanand Tiwari, an advocate.

The first bomb exploded in front of Sub-Inspector Yuvraj Singh who was escorting Monu Singh. Both suffered injuries in their legs and abdomen. The SSP questioned the lawyer who had jumped from the second floor, as the cops found his behavior suspicious. The police launched a manhunt to nab the criminals. A group of lawyers gathered near the Tej Bahadur Sapru hospital and resorted to ‘chakka jam’, protesting against the attack. They booed away City Magistrate UB Tripathi and police officers who tried to pacify them.

In a statement, Sonu Singh, who is out on parole, said seven bombs were hurled at him and his brother in an attempt to eliminate them. He lodged an FIR with Colonelganj police against six persons, including slain Sant Gyaneshwar’s brother Indra Dev Tiwari.

Meanwhile, the lawyers of the district court decided to gherao the office of the District Magistrate on Friday and boycott work for two days in protest against the failure of the administration to ensure the security of the court complex. District bar spokesman Manoj Kumar Singh Lokesh said despite the Allahabad High Court’s instruction to the administration, no security plan had been implemented in the district courts. A few months back, the police had installed one metal detector, but this was removed after some days.