Crude bomb blast at Shariatpur house injures woman, damages three homes
Woman hospitalised after bombs explode inside kitchen
A woman was seriously injured and three houses were damaged after a large stockpile of crude bombs exploded in a kitchen in Shariatpur's Zajira upazila today (5 September).
The explosion occurred around noon at the house of Faruk Chhoyal in the Chardhupuria Charkandi area of Mulna Union. The injured woman, Rokeya Begum, 40, is Faruk's wife, police said.
According to police and local residents, Rokeya entered the kitchen to prepare food when the cocktails stored there exploded simultaneously.
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The blast severely injured Rokeya and sent the kitchen's tin roof flying into a nearby bamboo grove. Two adjacent houses belonging to Samad Chhoyal and Hakim Chhoyal were also damaged.
Local residents rescued Rokeya and took her to Zajira Upazila Health Complex. She was later referred to Dhaka Medical College Hospital after her condition deteriorated.
Medical Officer Tanvir Ahmed of the health complex said the woman had suffered serious injuries and was referred to Dhaka for advanced treatment.
The blast comes amid a longstanding dispute over local dominance between Rezaul Shikder, general secretary of the Mulna Union BNP unit, and Tamiz Khan, a member of the upazila Awami League, according to local residents.
On 10 August, supporters of the two groups clashed in the same area, during which more than 100 cocktails were reportedly detonated. At least 10 people were injured, including one person who lost a wrist. Mannan Sardar, 70, who was critically injured in the blasts, later died. A case over that incident is pending.
Local residents claimed that Faruk Chhoyal supports Rezaul Shikder. Rezaul denied the claim, saying Faruk might have attended his political programmes but was not directly his supporter.
"I am currently in Dhaka, so I cannot comment on the explosion," he said.
Zajira Police Station Officer-in-Charge Saleh Ahmed said police went to the scene after receiving information about the explosion and initially found that a large number of cocktails had been stored in the kitchen.
"The roof was blown off in the explosion and one person was injured. We are investigating who stored the cocktails there, how they were stored and for what purpose," he said, adding that legal action would be taken.
