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Five kin, including deceased, booked for illegally storing explosives in Behta
A firecracker explosion in Gudamba's Behta area killed two and injured five. Police linked the incident to illegal storage and manufacturing.
An explosion that ripped through a house in Gudamba’s Behta area near here on Sunday was due to the storage and mishandling of firecrackers, police said, citing preliminary investigation. The explosion at the illegal firecracker manufacturing unit left two dead and five others injured.
Also, five people, including one of the deceased, have been booked in the case. All of them are relatives.
According to the FIR lodged by sub-inspector Santosh Patel, who’s in charge of the Behta police outpost, the explosion occurred around 11:55 am and rocked a residential area in Behta. Local police, fire brigade teams, and ambulances rushed to the site and rescued seven people trapped under the collapsed structure and adjoining houses.
Doctors at a nearby hospital declared two of them—Alam (50), and his wife Munni (48)—dead on arrival. Five others—Irshad (22), the couple’s son; Nadeem (24); Zaid (35); Imran (32); and Noorjahan (25)—were hospitalised with injuries.
During the course of the investigation, it was found that Alam and Munna’s family members were engaged in the manufacturing and storage of firecrackers in violation of the Explosives Act, 1908. The stockpile triggered the explosion that led to the fatalities and injuries.
The police have named five people—Alam (deceased), Sheru alias Wasir, Shoaib and Tinu alias Ali Ahmad and his brother Ali Ahmad—as accused in connection with the illegal firecracker operation. A case has been registered under Sections 105, 110, and 3(5) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) along with Sections 3, 4, and 5 of the Explosives Act, 1908. Further legal proceedings are underway.
Police said the explosion also caused damages to nearby structures, and forensic teams had been called in to assess the scale of the illegal operation. Police are also investigating whether Alam and his associates were supplying the firecrackers for commercial use in the run-up to the festive season. Senior officials confirmed that accountability will be fixed and strict action will be taken against those responsible.
