7-yr-old boy killed in tiffin bomb blast in Bihar, 3rd such explosion in 1 week

Patna: A seven-year-old boy was killed after a crude bomb kept in a tiffin box exploded near Makhdoom Shah Dargah ghat around 11.30am on Monday, police said

This is third crude bomb explosion in the last one week in Bhagalpur’s Nathnagar. According to police, the incident took place when the boy found tiffin box comprising three steel containers from a garbage dump while playing. The bomb exploded as soon as the boy picked up the tiffin box; killing him on the spot.

Prima facie evidence suggests that miscreants kept the bomb at a secluded place to ensure police did not discover it during a search operation conducted during the Panchayat election. A bomb disposal squad team reached the spot to collect residues of the explosive for investigation and defused more bombs kept inside tiffin boxes. The nature of the explosives is yet to be ascertained, police said.

“The bomb exploded when the boy picked up the tiffin box and he died on the spot”, said Bhagalpur senior SP Nitasha Guriya, adding that police have lodged a case and have started a probe against a suspect.

Bhagalpur SSP told HT that a criminal recently released from the jail could be involved in the incident and police conducted raids at his hideout.

On December 9, an unidentified ragpicker was killed in an explosion near Nathnagar railway station between Bhagalpur-Patna railway sections. Superintendent of railway police (Jamalpur) Aamir Jawed constituted an SIT to crack the case.

On December 11, two schoolchildren received minor injuries in crude bomb explosions which occurred at Momin Tola locality barely 500 metres from the Nathnagar railway station. Police said three children found an abandoned canister near the trash while playing there. When they tried to open the canister, it exploded, injuring the two.