Bhagalpur blast: Probe points to bomb making, house owner on run

Sources in the bomb disposal and detection squad (BDDS) of Bihar’s Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS) said they had recovered at least seven kilograms of iron nails and 15 kilograms of explosives, besides some chemicals used in making bombs.

Preliminary probe into the blast in Bihar’s Bhagalpur on Thursday night, which left 14 people dead and 10 others injured, suggests that the house where the explosion took place was being used to make bombs, the police said on Saturday.

Rescue operation underway after the explosion in Bhagalpur on Friday. (PTI)

The high-impact blast at the densely populated Kajwalichak locality was initially thought to have been caused by illegal manufacturing of firecrackers.

Sources in the bomb disposal and detection squad (BDDS) of Bihar’s Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS), a team of which visited the site on Friday, said they had recovered at least seven kilograms of iron nails and 15 kilograms of explosives, besides some chemicals used in making bombs.

Abhayanand, Bihar’s former director general of police, said firecrackers could be turned into a dangerous bomb by increasing the quantity of explosives and mixing it with nails. “The picture will be clearer only after the forensic science laboratory’s report,” he said.

Police sources said their initial investigation showed that the house where the explosion took place was purchased by one Mohammad Azad Malik from Lliawati, the woman who died in the blast along with other members of her family. She lived in one part of the house with her family on rent, while Azad used the other part to run his grille manufacturing unit.

Malik has been missing since the blast.

“Malik’s arrest is crucial to get to the bottom of the matter,” Bhagalpur’s senior superintendent of police (SSP) Babu Ram said, adding that a police team searched the ancestral house of Azad in Chamelichak-Mouzzachak area and took his two others relatives, Mohammad Soldier and Shahzad, into custody.

District magistrate Subrat Kumar Sen said there were no guidelines for payment of ex gratia to the kin of the deceased in such cases.

Officials said no fresh licence has been issued or existing one renewed for manufacturing firecrackers after November 12, 2020, when sale of crackers was banned in the state.