West Bengal / Children playing with country-made bomb as a ball exploded one dead

West Bengal : A seven-year-old boy was killed and a 10-year-old seriously injured when a country-made bomb exploded near Barrackpore, about 35 km north of Kolkata, on Tuesday morning. The children were playing with the bomb as a ball when it exploded. The injured child was first taken to the Government Hospital in Bhatpara from where he was referred to the Calcutta Medical College in Kolkata. Later, the police and the State Criminal Investigation Department's Bomb Disposal Squad recovered another unexploded crude bomb from the same spot. The bombs were hidden in a bush on the side of the railway track. A senior official of Government Railway Police (GRP), Naihati, said, “The incident took place between 6:30 am and 7 am on Tuesday. Locals said that two children were playing when the bomb exploded. He mistook the bomb as a ball. The police has started an investigation."

The grandmother of the injured boy said, “My grandson woke up in the morning and went to play along the railway track. Since it was Kali Puja last night, he and his friends were trying to find out if there were any unburned crackers left. His hand was torn off in the blast." Kakinada comes under Barrackpore Lok Sabha constituency.

Several areas such as Kakinada, Bhatpara and Jagatdal, located in the industrial area of ​​Barrackpore, have been in the news for political clashes between the TMC and the BJP in the past. Barrackpore MP and former state BJP vice-president Arjun Singh had rejoined the TMC earlier this year. He had joined the BJP before the 2019 Lok Sabha elections. Bombs were also hurled at Singh's house in September 2021. His close friend Manish Shukla was shot dead in October 2020.

The BJP has targeted the ruling TMC over the deteriorating law and order situation in the state over Tuesday's incident. BJP state president Sukanta Majumdar said, “Anyone can find bombs and other weapons all over West Bengal. Once these (weapons) were made in Munger in Bihar but now they are made here. All these will be used to silence the opposition during the 2023 panchayat elections. This proves how bloody an election can be."

On BJP's allegations, TMC spokesperson Kunal Ghosh said, "There are rumors that Majumdar may not stay as state BJP president for long and hence he is making such statements to leave his mark. The Police is investigating. The number of such incidents has come down over time in that area.”