Sheikh Yunus Ali, 58, ward-2 AL president and commissioner of Khulna City Corporation (KCC) of the same ward, escaped the attack on his life without a scratch.

Eyewitnesses said the bomb was hurled around 9:15pm from the rooftop of the nearby Janata Shopping Complex and it exploded only a few yards away from Yunus.

"I was the target. I ran into the party office after the explosion," Yunus told The Daily Star.

Two shops were damaged in the blast and plying of vehicles on the Khulna-Jessore highway was disrupted for hours.

The AL leader claimed the Purbo Banglar Communist Party (PBCP-Janajuddha) threatened him few days ago.