Islamabad:
A bomb blast ripped through a coach of a train in Pakistan's Punjab province, killing three persons and injuring 15 more, officials said.
The explosion occurred in a crowded compartment of the Shalimar Express near Toba Tek Singh city this afternoon. The explosive device was planted in a toilet in an economy coach, TV news channels reported.
Three persons were killed and 15 injured in the explosion, state-run Radio Pakistan reported.
The train, going from Lahore to Karachi, was crossing Chatiana railway station when the explosion occurred, witnesses and officials said. The train was stopped and rescue teams took the dead and injured to hospitals in Faisalabad and Toba Tek Singh.
Police and Pakistan Railways personnel arrived at the scene to inspect the area and investigate the attack.
No group claimed responsibility for the blast. TV news channels reported that an anonymous caller had recently warned officials of Pakistan Railways that the train would be bombed if a payment of Rs 5 crore was not made.
There was no official word on the alleged threat. Shalimar Express, named after Lahore's famed Shalimar Garden, was one of the most prestigious trains of the cash-starved Pakistan Railways. It was suspended in 2010 before being revived as a luxury train with the involvement of a private firm in 2012.