Fatehabad explosion: Farmer held for carrying chemicals

Haryana Police has arrested a farmer for carrying chemical powder in a bottle which exploded inside a private bus on Tuesday at Bhuna in Fatehabad district, leaving a couple injured.
Police have ruled out any foul play or terror angle in the incident, saying the 37-year-old farmer Mukesh was carrying the chemical powder, which is generally used to scare away birds and stray animals from fields by causing an explosion.
"Last night, Mukesh, who hails from Jandli Kalan in Fatehabad was arrested. He had taken 200 acre of land on lease and wanted to use the chemical powder comprising potash and sulphur to trigger the explosion to scare away stray animals and birds.

"On that day, he was carrying the same in a bottle in his pocket. However, the bottle got heated up on its own and burst resulting in the explosion," Fatehabad's SP O P Narwal said today.
He said Mukesh, who had been booked under relevant provisions of law including carrying dangerous chemical in a negligent manner, endangering lives of others, fell down inside the bus after the explosion.
"There was commotion in the bus. Mukesh told us that his 'kurta' got burnt in the process. Scared, he got down from the bus and entered the fields and started running. He threw his burnt kurta in the fields, which was later recovered by the police.

"The man was scared and when somebody told him that many people had been killed in the explosion he tried to attempt suicide that night, but his mother who was awake prevented him from taking such a step," Narwal said giving details.

"It was sheer negligence on part of this man, who will now have to face law," he said.
He said that after the incident the police had been questioning several people and once they got vital leads, they zeroed-in on the accused.
The explosion took place at around 11 AM near Bhuna when the bus was on its way from Jakhal to Fatehabad.

A couple had sustained injuries in the incident.
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Meanwhile, Haryana ADGP (Law and Order) Muhammad Akil said detailed instructions have been issued to all police stations in the state to prevent the re-occurrence of such incidents.
Directions have also been given to maintain complete records of all those involved in the sale of potash and sulphur, he said.
Apart from this, regular inspection should be carried out to see the quantity of stock sold by the shopkeepers, the ADGP said.
He said shopkeepers have been asked to install CCTV cameras in their shops and maintain complete record of those who purchase such chemicals from them.

Akil said that police would also direct private bus operators to install CCTV cameras.
He said the explosion in Bhuna was an accident, while the earlier three blasts in Kurukshetra and Panipat were criminal offences.
The low-intensity blast in a state-run bus near Pipli in Kurukshetra had left 12 passengers injured.
On January 16, a bomb blast had taken place in a passenger train at Panipat railway station. The explosive material was planted in a compartment next to the engine but there was no casualty.
On May 13, an explosion had rocked an EMU train which had reached Panipat from Delhi and had been moved to the yard. Again, there was no casualty.

A review meeting regarding these blasts has been held under the chairmanship of Director General of Police today, he said.