Hyderabad bombings killed 14: Indian minister

Twin bombings in a busy shopping area in the Indian city of Hyderabad are now known to have killed 14 people and wounded 119, a senior Indian minister said on Friday.

"The total dead are 14, total injured is 119. Out of this six are critical," Home Minister Sushil Kumar Shinde said at a news conference in the city following Thursday evening's attacks.

N. Rao, a senior police official in Hyderabad, confirmed the toll of 14 and put the number of wounded at 80.

Another senior police officer had said on Thursday that 20 people were killed when two bombs placed on bicycles went off outside a popular cinema and bus stand in the southern city, a hub of India's IT industry.

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh said the perpetrators of the "dastardly act" would be punished. It came with the nation on alert after the recent hanging of a separatist unleashed protests in the Muslim-majority region of Kashmir.

No group has yet claimed responsibility.

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