MANGALURU: The mysterious low-intensity blast in an auto-rickshaw in Mangaluru on Saturday has got a twist with the Director General of Police(DGP) confirming the blast was an act of terror and not accidental.
"The blast is an act of terror with an intention to cause serious damage. Karnataka state police is probing deep into it along with central agencies," DGP Sood tweeted on Sunday morning.
The blast, which occurred on Saturday near Garody in Mangaluru, caused injuries to the passenger and rickshaw driver identified as Purushotham.
According to informed sources, the passenger, who was reportedly carrying a “fake identity” of Prem Raj, had a pressure cooker with improvised explosive devices (IEDs) in it with him. “The preliminary investigation revealed that he allegedly wanted to plant the IED at a certain target place in Mangaluru city but the explosive went off inside the auto rickshaw injuring him and the driver. The forensic team, which is carrying out a spot investigation has found a circuit and timer inside the pressure cooker,” said sources on condition of anonymity.
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The Forensic Science Laboratory(FSL) team and bomb squad have continued the search operation for more clues. Meanwhile, Mangaluru city police commissioner N Shashi Kumar has formed three special teams to probe the case.
Sources also confirmed that the passenger had recently travelled to Coimbatore. It may be recalled that on October 23, a car with an LPG cylinder in the boot had exploded at Kodaimedu in Coimbatore at 4am killing the driver - 29-year-old Jamesha Mubeen of Ukkadam. The police had recovered charred remains of Mubeen near the car, a crushed LPG cylinder, two-inch-long iron nails, tiny glass marbles, and a black powder-like substance. The case, which was initially registered and investigated by the TN police, is now being probed by the National Investigation Agency (NIA) after the opposition BJP demanded a probe by a Central agency alleging that it was a terror act.
“On November 19, at around 5.15 pm an auto rickshaw caught fire injuring the passenger and the auto rickshaw driver Purushottam. Both had suffered some burn injuries and were shifted to the hospital,” Mangaluru city police Commissioner N Shashi Kumar said.