Yellow phosphoric powder recovered from site
TEAM HERALD
teamherald@herald-goa.com
MARGAO: Police investigations into Thursday’s Sao Jose de Areal bomb blast has revealed that the blast was triggered by a reaction when deceased Paplu Mulgund reportedly put water on the bombs to contain smoke emanating from the container.
Police said the deceased had already assembled the bombs in the house, which were laced with cow dung and animal fat. As he reportedly found smoke billowing out from the container carrying the bombs, Paplu told his wife to bring water. “As he put the water on the bombs to contain the smoke, there was a reaction, and the blast killed Paplu on the spot”, informed a senior police officer.
“It seems that the deceased was assembling the bombs in the house as evident by the raw material found inside the rented premises. The wife is an eye witness to the incident. We have drawn most of the conclusions after interrogating the wife”, the acting district police chief said.
Commenting on the antecedents of deceased Paplu, SP Kashyap said the deceased had no criminal background, but hastened to add that some of his accomplices, who were involved in poaching, had cases registered at Ponda.
Replying to a question, he said the deceased has been staying in Goa since the last 25 years in rented premises in slums or close to Margao. “He was not new to Goa or Margao. He was also involved in killing and cutting fish’, he added.
Police are also trying to ascertain whether the deceased had two other wives and children and whether he had visited his native place Hubli to cast his vote in the Lok Sabha poll.
Bombs recovered and disposed
MARGAO: It took less than an hour and half for the seven-member National Security Guards team to recover the 50-odd crude bombs and explosive material from the rented premises of deceased Paplu Mulgund before the explosives were destroyed at a stone quarry in Sao Jose de Areal village later in the evening.
The NSG team headed by Lt Col A Bal Krishna, which was well equipped with bomb disposal equipment, took around an hour and half as they meticulously got the explosives out of the premises. Besides the crude bombs, the team recovered yellow phosphoric powder and orange powder, cow dung and animal fat. NSG team members, Goa police personnel and others heaved a sigh of relief as a guard attired in bomb-proof jacket, brought out a tray containing the bombs laced with cow dung and animal fat. These were later destroyed at a stone quarry.
