Imphal, April 24: A powerful bomb strapped to a scooter went off in the heavily-fortified VIP Colony here this morning, its shrapnel flung 100 metres away into the chief minister’s official complex.

Four bystanders were injured in the attack.

How the bomb went undetected by the security ring in the neighbourhood where MLAs and ministers live has raised fresh questions about the arrangement.

The timing, too, seemed uncanny — the blast comes a day ahead of a visit by Union cabinet secretary K.M. Chandrashekhar and a day after Ibobi Singh talked tough against militants and those who have a nexus with them.

It was 10.35am, about the time when the elite neighbourhood begins buzzing into action. A deafening sound shook Congress MLA T. Mangibabu’s residence. The bomb-fitted scooter was parked just outside.

Part of a 15-foot high boundary wall of the legislator’s residence collapsed under the impact of the blast, windowpanes of nearby houses cracked and pieces of the exploded scooter parts landed in various places in the neighbourhood.

No VIP, however, was hurt in the attack.

Mangibabu, who is also the vice-president of the PCC, had left earlier in the morning for Delhi.

Manipur information and tourism minister T.N. Haokip was at home when the bomb went off. His residential quarters is right next to Mangibabu’s.

After preliminary investigations, police said the bomb was exploded using a timer device. No group has claimed responsibility for the attack.

Though no arrests have been made so far, the police rounded up all the visitors to the VIP colony for verification. The director general of police, Yumnam Joykumar Singh, who rushed to the spot, did not reply to questions from mediapersons.

The Imphal West superintendent of police, L. Kailun, also declined to speak.

However, a senior police official said the attackers wanted to demonstrate their striking prowess and that the blast did not have any specific target.

After the March 8 bomb attack on Manipur Assembly by the Cobra Task Force of Peoples Revolutionary Party of Kangleipak (Prepak), security at the VIP colony was increased.

The attackers managed to plant the bomb despite the fact that there is only one entry point to the colony.

A police picket regularly frisks visitors at the entry.

The incident sent Okram Ibobi Singh, his ministers and the DGP into a huddle to review the security situation.

The injured persons — Seram Ramchandra, Chengiz Khan, his sister-in-law Quresha Begum and Md. Hudam, a student — were admitted to two Imphal hospitals.

They are stated to be out of danger.

The police also recovered an IED from an abandoned rickshaw near one of the gates of Imphal pologround at 2pm today, just an hour ahead of governor S.S. Sidhu’s scheduled arrival to attend the concluding programme of 18th Governor’s Polo Cup.

After a daylong alert, the police gunned down three suspected militants at Langol area of Imphal West district.

The trio were killed in retaliation after they fired at a police frisking party at 5.45pm.

Two nine mm pistols were found on them.