Wires, conflicting statements from injured raise red flags for suspected IED blast

Two men suffered minor injuries, with one of them losing a finger. Both were taken to Bowring Hospital. | Photo credit: Getty Images

The recovery of wires from the blast site in a fourth-floor apartment of a building under construction on Jeremiah Road and conflicting statements from two people injured in the blast raised red flags among investigators. An IED can be rigged by connecting the explosive to the trigger mechanism using wires and circuit boards. The torch involved in the explosion is suspected to be the trigger in this case.

After the police questioned the two persons injured in the blast, Bengaluru City Police Commissioner Seemant Kumar Singh said, “They are giving conflicting statements.” “Based on their statements, we are trying to reconstruct what happened and how the incident developed,” he added.

The police are trying to find out the ancestors of the two injured and have been looking for information about them at the police stations under the jurisdiction of their residences in their hometowns.

Another senior official said the suspicious materials found at the site were said to have been delivered there and were not originally there. Police are now analyzing CCTV footage from the area and using other technical evidence to trace the source of the delivery.

Loud sound

The alleged blast took place around 2.30 pm on Tuesday in a building on Jeremiah Road, a quiet residential lane within Pulakeshinagar police station.

Speaking to reporters, Mansur, a resident of the locality, said that the neighbors initially suspected a cylinder explosion, but later learned that a “battery” had exploded.

“The explosion was very loud and all the surrounding buildings could hear it. When the residents went there, one of the injured man’s fingers was hanging from his hand and he was subsequently taken to the hospital,” he said.

The building under construction is situated between several residential buildings in an area that includes both houses and commercial establishments.

Mr. Singh said some flats in the building where the blast occurred had been completed and were occupied, while interior work was underway in others. The explosion occurred in a house where interior work was going on.

The police informed late

The police were not immediately informed about the blast, sources said. The injured were taken to the Bowring and Lady Curzon Hospital, where doctors filed a Medico Legal Case (MLC) and informed the jurisdictional police.

According to Mr. Singh, the police received a Medico-Legal Case (MLC) report in the evening, following which the city police’s Anti-Terrorist Squad and the Bomb Detection and Disposal Squad (BDDS) rushed to the spot and examined the scene.

HM advises caution

Karnataka Home Minister Priyank Kharge said it was not yet clear whether the blast was caused by a chemical reaction or whether it was caused by an IED. “This can only be known after the FSL report is released,” he said, urging people not to believe rumours.

Published – 21 Oct 2026 13:32 IST