Bengaluru: Box of explosives on PM Modi’s convoy route amateurishly assembled, sources say

Bengaluru: Police have expanded the probe into the case involving explosives found along Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s convoy route on the outskirts of the city on May 10. 

Special teams of investigators from the Bengaluru South district are looking for clues beyond the crime scene and near the Tamil Nadu border. 

Two gelatin sticks, six incense sticks, a matchbox and cellophane tapes, along with a battery pack, wires and what appeared to be a circuit board were found 20 feet off a mud road adjacent to the forested area near Kanakapura Road. 

Modi’s convoy later passed through the route as he was scheduled to attend a programme at Art of Living Ashram. Sources said prima facie the explosives were set up in an “amateurish way”. 

“The circuit board was not connected to the gelatin sticks and battery pack. It seems highly unlikely that someone would put an explosive in the box and cover it with one round of cellophane tape. The entire setup looks amateurish. It was either an attempt to scare or someone must’ve dumped it there. We’re investigating,” a senior police officer said. 

Sources said that the gelatin sticks looked old, but they were awaiting an expert opinion before forming conclusions. 

Police are probing if there were any local issues around the venue that led someone to place the explosives. They are yet to ascertain a terror angle, and the National Investigation Agency (NIA) remained on the sidelines, offering support without fully taking over probe. 

Police have registered FIR under Section 4 (punishment for attempt to cause explosion or for making or keeping explosive with intent to endanger life or property) of Explosive Substances Act and Section 9B of the Explosives Act.