In a suspected act of terror, an improvised explosive device went off in the Government offices complex – civil station – of Malappuram town, headquarters of Kerala’s Muslim-majority Malappuram district, on Tuesday morning. Nobody was injured in the low-intensity explosion but the police are not ruling out the possibility of terror angle.
The police recovered a small cardboard box superscribed “The Base Movement” and containing a pen drive and pamphlets bearing the same title, a map of India and a picture of killed Al-Qaeda chief Osama Bin laden from the spot. Director General of Police loknath Behera said an investigation had already been on into the incident.
Eyewitnesses said the blast took place under a Chevrolet car parked in the compound. They said the vehicle was lifted off the ground in the blast. Some other vehicles were also damaged in the explosion. The Chevrolet car was hired by District Medical Officer (Homoeopathy) Reji Kuzhiyelil, who was attending a meeting inside the complex when the blast occurred.
The Police were of the opinion that the intention of those behind the blast, which took place at 10.10 am on Tuesday, was perhaps not to hurt anybody but to convey a clear terror message by terrorising the people. The car under which the blast occurred was parked outside the district office of the Public Service Commission and the First Class Judicial Magistrate Court.
The State police chief indicated that assistance of central agencies might be sought in the investigation. According to District Superintendent of Police Debesh Kumar Behera, the explosive device was “probably” packed in a pressure cooker. “The substance used for the explosive device seems to be ammonium nitrate,” he said.
He said the box and its contents would be subjected to forensic examination while eyewitnesses reported that there was strong smell of explosive powder in the area after the blast. According to police, several factors including the pamphlets found in the cardboard box indicated possible terror link.
The pamphlet, titled “In the Name of Allah / The Base Movement”, had references to alleged human rights violations in the country including the killing of Mohammad Akhlaq over the beef controversy in Dadri, Uttar Pradesh. The literature in the pamphlet also contained harsh criticisms against the Indian State and courts and it ended with “Next, Count Your Days”.
Among the debris recovered from the spot were those of batteries and other electrical implements suggesting that the device was detonated using a timer. Officials said Tuesday’s explosion had similarities with the one that had occurred at the district collectorate in Kollam on June 15.
Similar explosions had occurred in Chittoor in Andhra Pradesh on April 7 and Mysore, Karnataka on August 1. Investigating agencies had indicated that the Base Movement itself could have been behind those explosions. Security experts believe that Tamil Nadu-based outfit Al-Ummah could be functioning now under the name of Base Movement.