Unbelievable that a Christian bombed religious gathering: Jharkhand Governor

Chennai: Stoking a row, Jharkhand Governor C P Radhakrishnan on Monday said it is “unbelievable” that a Christian bombed the religious gathering of Jehovah’s Witnesses at Kochi on Sunday that killed three people by alluding that the attack could be a handiwork of “Islamist terrorists” who have wracked havoc in Kerala and Tamil Nadu in the past.

Radhakrishnan, who won the Coimbatore Lok Sabha seat in 1998 on a BJP ticket following the serial blasts in the industrial city that killed over 50 people, demanded that the Kerala Government “rigorously work” towards finding out the “real culprits” of the bomb blast.

In a brief interaction with reporters in Paramakudi in Ramanathapuram district, Radhakrishnan, who was appointed as Jharkhand governor in March this year, said Kerala and Tamil Nadu have been a victim of terror activities by “Islamist terrorists” in the past.

He said that the CPI(M) government in Kerala and the DMK dispensation in Tamil Nadu believe that supporting “terrorists” amounts to courting Muslims. The two parties are “protecting” those committing murders and planting bombs, the Jharkhand governor alleged.

“Nobody believes that a Christian bombed a gathering of his own religion. It is unbelievable for many. The Kerala Government should work towards nabbing the real culprits who planted the bomb,” Radhakrishnan said, and demanded a detailed probe by the National Investigation Agency (NIA) into Sunday’s explosion by an improvised explosive device (IED).

NIA’s investigation will help prevent “dangers” that may be in the offing in the future, the Governor added.

Three people were killed and over 50 injured in a series of explosions at the Christian religious gathering near Kochi on Sunday morning. A Kochi resident identified as Dominic Martin surrendered before the police claiming responsibility for the bomb blast, citing differences with the ideology of the group as the provocation for the blasts.

Union Minister of State Rajeev Chandrashekar had on Sunday alleged that it was “very depressing” that a Christian congregation was targeted and blamed the Kerala Government for permitting a Hamas spokesperson to speak at a programmee in the state on Saturday.