Devices used for the blasts at Kalamassery in Ernakulam were Improvised Explosive Devices (IED), the Kerala Director General of Police (DGP) Shaik Darvesh Saheb confirmed. Multiple blasts at the Zamra International Convention and Exhibition Centre in Kalamassery on Sunday morning had killed a woman and injured 36 others, who were taking part in a prayer meeting of the Jehovah’s Witnesses.
Preliminary investigations have revealed that the explosions were caused by an IED device, the DGP said. The police will be constituting a special team for further investigations.
“Today morning, at approximately 9.40 am, there was an explosion at the Zamra Convention Centre, in which one person died and 36 others are under treatment. A regional convention of the Jehovah’s Witnesses was happening at the convention centre at the time. All our senior officials including the Commissioner of Police have reached the spot. Additional DGP (Law and Order) is also on the way. I will be reaching there shortly as well,” the DGP said.
He added that the police are examining all angles to find out “who was behind this” and take stringent action against them. The DGP also requested everyone to maintain peace and to avoid making provocative posts on social media.
In November 2022, a passenger Improvised Explosive Device (IED) contained in a pressure cooker and carried in an auto rickshaw was used for an explosion in a crowded part of Mangalore city. In 2014 in Bengaluru Church Street a similar low intensity blast happened that killed one woman and injured four others. IED containing aluminium powder mixed with sulphur, and residues of potassium nitrate was kept in a pipe casing.