11 Killed by Sikh Militants in India

Sikh militants in northern Punjab state killed at least 11 people, including a former state finance minister who was gunned down in downtown Chandigarh, police said Tuesday.

Police said Balwant Singh, the former Punjab state finance minister, was returning home in his car with two bodyguards and his driver after visiting a friend when the attack occurred. All four were killed by three gunmen.

At least seven other people were killed by militants in a spate of attacks around the strife-torn state Monday night and early Tuesday, police said.