Questions Over Handling Of Explosives In Kashmir Amid Probe Into Nine Deaths In Police Station Blast

The impact was so heavy in the blast that was triggered after the explosive substance went off at the police station in Nowgam that several houses in the vicinity of the congested location were damaged.  Local residents have raised questions over the way the seized explosive  substance that was recovered by Jammu and Kashmir police in connection with the Delhi blast case was handled by authorities and kept in the police station that lies in a residential area.

Police have admitted that some houses were damaged in the blast, with three civilians who resided in the vicinity of the station having gotten injured in the incident. “How can such a huge explosive substance be kept at the police station, which is in a congested area? We felt first that it was like an earthquake, as our houses shook with the impact of the blast. The window panes of several houses have broken,” says Naveed Ibrahim, a local resident.

An elderly Ghulam Mohi-ud-Din Bhat, who had learnt that the houses of some people were damaged in the area, was seen pleading with the security force personnel deployed near the police station area to allow him to meet his daughter, who resides at the place  He rushed to the place from his home which lies at a distance of several miles, to inquire about the well-being of his daughter and son-in-law, but was not allowed to move into the locality. “We grew worried after we got to know about the incident, but we heaved a sigh of relief as both my daughter and her other family members are safe,” he says.

Earlier, on the day of the Delhi blast, police said that they had recovered 2,900 kg of IED-making material and arms and ammunition, and arrested seven people, including a doctor, during an investigation in connection with the pasting of posters by militant groups near the Nowgam police station. On October 19, police registered the case after the posters were found pasted at different locations in Bunpora Nowgam. An  FIR no 162/2025 was registered under several sections of the UAPA Act, BNS, Explosive Substance Act, and Arms Act at the Police Station Nowgam.

J&K Director General of Police (DGP), Nalin Prabhat, has however termed the incident as accidental in nature. Addressing a press conference, Prabhat said that the seized explosive substance was kept at the police station for forensic examination. 

“The recovery was transported and kept securely at the open area of the police station, Nowgam. As part of the prescribed procedure, samples of the recovery had to be forwarded for further forensic and chemical examination. On account of the voluminous nature of the recovery, this process has was being carried out for the last two days by the FSL team,” said the DGP.

However, Tariq Ahmad Wani, a local resident, says that impact of the blast was so heavy that several houses in the Nowgam area were damaged,  which included that of his brother. “ Some eight to ten houses in the locality have been damaged with broken windows and panes, and my brother's house, which lies in the close vicinity of the police station area, was also damaged,” he says.

Following the incident, authorities have ordered a probe into the matter.   Jammu and Kashmir Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha has said that the probe will “ascertain the cause of the accidental explosion.”