At least 40 people have been killed after a deadly blast rocked a hospital in the Pakistani city of Quetta, the capital of Balochistan. The province's Chief Minister Sanaullah Zehri went on to blame an Indian intelligence agency for the explosion.

Zehri told Pakistan's Geo News hinting that India's Research and Analysis Wing (Raw) is involved in the incident, which preliminary reports suggest was a suicide bomb attack. Dozens have also been injured in the explosion.

Pakistan Quetta hospital bombing
Most of the victims of the Quetta hospital bombing are lawyers Naseer Ahmed/Reuters

Many of the victims were lawyers and there was stampede shortly after the bombing, suggest local reports. The blast occurs a day after the killing of a prominent lawyer, Bilal Anwar Kasi, the former president of Balochistan Bar Association. Kasi was shot dead by unidentified men.

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The blast took place shortly after Kasi's body was brought to the hospital. Security forces arrived at the hospital following the explosion and cordoned off the area. The bomb went off in the emergency section of the hospital. Aerial firing was also reported.

Condemning the attack, Pakistan's Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, said: "No one will be allowed to disturb the peace of the province. The people, police and security forces in Balochistan have given sacrifices for the country."

No one has claimed responsibility for the bombing as yet. A state of emergency has been declared in hospitals across the city of Quetta.