Manipur hostage killing handed over to NIA: CM Biren Singh
Manipur Chief Minister N Biren Singh on Friday confirmed that the case involving the killing of six hostages in Jiribam has been handed over to the National Investigation Agency (NIA).
The BJP on Monday claimed that the massive explosion at a factory in West Bengal’s Duttapukur was due to the presence of RDX and not firecrackers. West Bengal LoP and BJP leader Suvendu Adhikari on Monday said that he has filed a PIL in the Kolkata High Court demanding an NIA probe into the blast.
At least eight people died and several others sustained injuries after a massive explosion at a two-story house in the Duttapukur area of North 24 Parganas district. The police said the house was being used to run an illegal fireworks factory.
The intensity of the explosion was so high that it damaged some of the nearby buildings. The roof of the two-storey house, from where the factory was being run illegally, was blown off completely.
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“It was RDX and it was a powerful explosion. I have already filed a PIL in the Kolkata High Court. My submission is granted by the court and hopefully, it will be listed tomorrow,” Adhikari was quoted as saying by news agency ANI.
Congress demands court-monitored probe
Congress leader Adhir Ranjan Chowdhary, who visited the spot, said that it didn’t look like a firecracker blast and demanded a thorough investigation into the incident.
“After seeing the situation here, I can say that it’s not a firecracker (blast), there are some more things that police don’t want to disclose. It should be thoroughly investigated,” Chowdhary said.
When asked if would also demand the NIA probe, the Congress leader said that there was no need for an NIA probe but a court-monitored investigation should be carried out.
This was the third such incident in less than five months. Earlier on May 16, as many as nine people had died in a similar blast at an illegal firecracker factory at Egra in East Midnapore district. In another such incident, a huge explosion had taken place in a fireworks factory at Budge Budge in South 24 Parganas district.
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