Kerala Police have booked eight persons in connection with a fireworks accident at the Anjootambalam Veererkavu Temple in Nileshwaram, Kasaragod district, injuring over 150 persons. The accused, all temple authorities, have been booked for illegal storage of firecrackers.
The accident occurred around midnight on Monday, October 28, when over 1,000 devotees had gathered for the traditional Theyyam festival. Nearly 150 people were injured in the mishap, with eight sustaining serious injuries. Three of the injured, admitted to a private hospital in Kozhikode, are on ventilator support. One among them has suffered 70% burn injuries.
The Nileshwaram police, who initiated a probe, said in their First Information Report (FIR) that the temple authorities neither obtained the required licence for storing firecrackers nor followed safety standards during the display.
The accused have been booked under Sections 288 (negligent conduct with respect to explosive substance), 125(a), 125(b) (acts endangering human life), and 3(5) (common intention) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS). They also face charges under Sections 3(a) (causing explosion unlawfully) and 6 (abetment) of the Explosive Substances Act.
Eyewitnesses reported that the accident occurred when sparks from crackers fell into a storage room containing other fireworks. While the injured were initially rushed to various hospitals in the district, those critically hurt were later shifted to hospitals in Kannur and Kozhikode.