Bengaluru explosion: Worker loses two fingers as device disguised as torch explodes

A blast at an under-construction building in east Bengaluru on October 20, which injured two workers, may have been caused by an improvised explosive device (IED) disguised as a torch, preliminary investigations have revealed. According to reports, the device exploded when a worker attempted to switch it on. Police are awaiting forensic results to establish the nature of the device and have not officially confirmed the use of an IED.

The blast took place at a seven-storey building under construction in Pulakeshinagar. The two injured workers were identified as Suraj Kumar (28), a painter from Gorakhpur in Uttar Pradesh, and Alauddin Barbhaij (53), a security guard from Dimapur, Assam.

Kumar lost two fingers and sustained severe burns and shrapnel wounds to his face, head and chest. Barbhaij suffered a minor injury near his eye and was treated at Minto Eye Hospital.

According to The Indian Express, Barbhaij received a parcel at the building's ground floor on the afternoon of October 20. CCTV footage reportedly showed an unidentified person delivering the parcel, which the guard then collected.

The guard subsequently called Kumar, who was working on the seventh floor, to help activate a torch inside the parcel. Barbhaij took the torch to the fifth floor, where it exploded in Kumar’s hands when he tried to switch it on, the report said.

Kumar’s younger brother, Abhi Kumar (18), who was also working at the site, said they had been working at the building for only two days when the incident occurred.

Investigators suspect that the device contained a small quantity of explosive material and ball bearings that acted as shrapnel. 

Police began questioning Barbhaij on Wednesday, October 21, after he was discharged from Minto Eye Hospital. 

However, Bengaluru Police have not officially confirmed that an IED caused the explosion. Police Commissioner Seemant Kumar said investigators were awaiting the results of a forensic examination to determine the nature of the device.

“There is nothing to panic about at this stage. The festive season is underway, and we are very alert. We are investigating the incident and are not ruling out anything,” he said.