Central agencies visit Nowgam police station explosion site, collect samples

Teams from the National Security Guard (NSG), National Investigation Agency (NIA), and Central Forensic Science Laboratory (CFSL) on Sunday visited the Nowgam police station blast site, where nine people died and 32 others were injured in an accidental explosion on Friday night.

The central agencies inspected the site and collected samples, which will be analysed to determine the nature of the explosives seized from the so-called ‘white-collar terror’ module and stored at the Nowgam police station.

The Jammu & Kashmir Police and the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) on Saturday described the incident as an “accidental detonation.” Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha, who also heads the UT’s Home Department, has ordered a formal investigation into the blast.

On Sunday, J&K Police personnel continued to cordon off the road leading to the Nowgam police station with concertina wire. Access to the area is restricted to security agencies and residents of the lane. The Nowgam police station has been operating from a private house for several years.

The blast occurred around 11:22 pm on Friday, when a team of forensic experts, along with the J&K Police’s State Investigation Agency (SIA), was extracting samples from the seized explosives.

Questions are now being raised about the handling of the explosives. DGP J&K Police Nalin Prabhat said on Saturday morning that “owing to the unstable and sensitive nature of the recovery, it was being handled with utmost caution.”

However, experts with extensive experience in ballistics and forensic science have suggested that “mishandling” could have triggered the incident, though the exact cause will be confirmed only after the probe is completed.

One expert told The Tribune that several questions remain unanswered. “Usually, volatile explosive material is handled in a controlled environment under the supervision of explosives specialists. It is also not advisable to carry out such operations during night hours,” he said.

He added that in Friday’s case, the sampling and re-sealing of the explosives were conducted late at night. “These are the questions the investigation team will need to resolve,” the expert said.