Nine people were killed and dozens were injured late Friday when confiscated explosives detonated at an Indian police station in the troubled region of Kashmir while under analysis.
Nalin Prabhat, Kashmir’s police director-general, said on Saturday that the explosives detonated during examination by police and forensic experts in a “very unfortunate” accident at Nowgam police station. He definitively ruled out any foul play, saying it was an accident and that “any other speculation into the cause of this incident is unnecessary.”
The explosion eviscerated much of the police station and heavily damaged adjacent buildings. Several vehicles around the station were “engulfed in flames and reduced to charred husks, with debris scattered across the site,” a police statement said.
“The intensity of the blast was such that some body parts were recovered from nearby houses, around 100-200 metres away from the police station,” a police source told Reuters.
Kashmir’s Lieutenant Gov. Manoj Sinha announced on social media that he launched an investigation into the incident.
“I have ordered a probe to ascertain the cause of the accidental explosion. Deeply anguished by the loss of precious lives due to extremely tragic accidental blast at Nowgam police station in Srinagar. My condolences to the bereaved families. I pray for speedy recovery of the injured,” he wrote.
The explosion came just four days after a car bomb exploded outside the Red Fort Metro Station in New Delhi, killing 13 people. Indian authorities alleged a link with Kashmir, the country’s only majority Muslim province and a longtime area of discord. A wave of raids and arrests took place in the wake of the bombing, raids which included the confiscation of explosives, which were likely the cause of Friday night’s blast.
INDIA HAS BLAMED PAKISTAN FOR THE TERRORIST ATTACK IN KASHMIR. WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW
The subcontinent was racked by tragedy this week, with rare bombings in the capitals of India and Pakistan. While India has been hesitant to accuse Islamabad of any involvement, Pakistan was quick to lay the blame on its longtime foe.
Tensions have remained high after a brief but tense air and drone war earlier this year. Verbal sparring between the two powers has continued in the aftermath.