An improvised explosive device exploded on the roadside in Orumanayur on the beaches of Chavakkad in Thrissur district, Kerala. Abdul Shafiq (Mastan-32) was taken into police custody in the incident. The bomb squad and the police are continuing to investigate. Chavakkad is now a Muslim-dominated area (54% in 2011 and is the western gateway to Guruvayur temple).
There was a loud explosion on Shaka Road in the sixth ward east in Orumanayur panchayat after two in the afternoon on Sunday. Locals informed the police after seeing the smoke and debris of the explosion. They claimed they came running after hearing a loud noise and did not know what had happened.
An initial investigation found that gunpowder was used to make the explosive device. Glass fragments and quartz stones were added for maximum damage. The IED was covered in white cloth. The police checked the nearby CCTV and took Shafiq into custody.
Police confirmed that Shafiq has been accused of around 20 criminal cases. The preliminary finding was that the bomb exploded in his possession. The police interrogated him and searched his house.
Earlier action was taken against Shafiq under the Kerala Anti-Social Activities (Prevention Act (Kappa Act) aimed at restraining violent goondas. The accused claimed that he learned to make explosives from fellow inmates of Viyyur Central Jail in Thrissur. There was a case in Mannuthi police station after Shafiq assembled an IED on his own and tested it. He also has cases registered at Ollur, Thrissur East and Nedupuzha police stations.
Shafiq has cases in his name for attempted murder, creating a terrorist atmosphere by throwing explosives at a house, producing explosives, theft and assault. He has been a repeat offender since 2009.
The police said that the explosives were used at Orumanayur four months ago. He made the explosive device using gunpowder, glass and stones, kept it at home and blasted it on the road. It is alleged that he has a history of creating an atmosphere of terror by carrying out such explosions to extort money from Hawala black money carriers.
Shafiq told the police that he had made the explosives for self-defence. He told the police that he had made the explosives to be used in case someone wanted to attack him.
Shafiq boasted the blast was carried out to prove to the locals that he could indulge in terrorist acts. He told the police that such explosives could be used to kill people.
The bomb squad collected evidence from the explosive device for further investigation. A. Prathap, the Chavakkad Police Station House Officer, said they are also investigating whether Shafiq had made the explosives for someone else.
Intelligence Bureau officials also reached the station to interrogate the accused. Shafiq was remanded in the Orumanayur blast case.
Police said there was no politics behind the incident, but some doubts remain.
Shafiq is a Kalathode native who shifted to Orumanayur two years ago. Kalathode is near Mannuthy, 30 km east of Orumanayur. There are several places of worship belonging to Christians, Muslims and Hindus near Shaka Road, where the explosion occurred. SNDP and RSS branches are called Shakas.
Maoists, Communists and the Popular Front of India terrorists assemble and use IEDs in Kerala. Who mentored Shafiq? How did a marked criminal assemble and store an IED for four months and explode it openly in the afternoon?
Why are the locals tight-lipped about the incident? Will police inquire about Shafiq’s terrorist links? Has the BJP’s win in Thrissur triggered terrorist sleeper cells?
