A high intensity explosion rocked outside Gate no -5 of the Delhi high court, killing 11 and leaving 65  injured, today, at around 10.15 AM.

Gate no. 5 is the main gate of the Delhi High Court where most of the lawyers and litigants enter and The Delhi Police have cordoned off the area. The explosion occurred outside gate No.5 where 100 to 200 people were waiting in queue to get passes for entry into the court complex. The nature and magnitude of the blast was immediately not known. The injured were rushed to the nearest government hospital the RML Hospital.

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh has said from Dhaka, that today's terror attack in Delhi is a cowardly attack. Dr Singh. He further requested all political parties to unite to crush terror.

The Home Ministry has confirmed it was a terror attack and has issued a nation-wide alert. Union Home Minister P Chidambaram made a short statement on the blast in Parliament. He said it is yet to identify behind the blast.

It was caused by "at least a medium-intensity bomb" and may have been placed in a bag, briefcase or suitcase, home ministry officials said.

Mumbai has been put on red alert, as the Ganapathy Celebrations are going ahead in the city with large gathering at all prime places.

Police say ammonium nitrate might have been used in the bomb.

The email purportedly sent by the Harkat-ul-Jihad-al-Islami (HuJI), which was received by media organisations, this afternoon, says: "Our demand is that Afzal Guru's death sentence should be repealed immediately else we would target major high courts and the Supreme Court of India." The veracity of the mail is being checked, by the National Investigation Agency (NIA).

Afzal Guru has been sentenced to death by the Supreme Court for his role in the attack on the Indian parliament on December 13, 2001. His mercy petition is pending with President Pratibha Patil.