Tragic Blast at Kashmir Police Station Kills Nine, Linked to Delhi Bombing Probe

SRINAGAR, Indian-administered Kashmir – A massive explosion at a police station in the main city of Srinagar late Friday night killed at least nine people and injured nearly 30 others, in a tragic incident linked to a sprawling investigation into a deadly car bombing in India’s capital earlier this week.

The blast occurred when a cache of confiscated explosives, stored at the Nowgam police station on the southern outskirts of Srinagar, detonated unexpectedly. The explosion took place as a forensic team, accompanied by police officials, was examining the materials as part of their probe into Monday’s attack in New Delhi.

A Scene of Devastation

The force of the blast was catastrophic, ripping through the police station and hurling debris and human remains hundreds of meters away. The devastation was so severe that identification of the victims proved immensely challenging.

“The intensity of the blast was such that some body parts were recovered from nearby houses, around 100-200 metres away from the police station,” an unnamed source told Reuters, adding that identification efforts were underway as some bodies “have been completely burned.”

Most of the deceased were policemen and members of the forensic team who were handling the explosives at the moment of detonation. Two local administrative officials from the Srinagar government were also among the dead. With five of the injured reported to be in critical condition, authorities fear the death toll could rise further.

Not Terrorism, but a “Very Unfortunate Incident”

Despite the timing and nature of the explosion, officials were quick to state that this was not a fresh terrorist attack. Instead, they described it as a tragic accident stemming from the ongoing, high-stakes investigation.

“Not a terror attack. Police say it’s a very unfortunate incident,” Aditya Raj Kaul, a senior executive editor at Indian broadcaster NDTV, stated in a social media post. “The blast happened when a forensics team and the police were checking the explosive material stored at the police station.”

The Delhi Bombing and a Widening Net

The blast in Kashmir is directly connected to the investigation into a car explosion in New Delhi on Monday, which killed at least 12 people near the historic Red Fort. Indian authorities have labeled that incident a “terror” attack.

Just hours before that explosion, Delhi police had arrested several individuals and seized a significant arsenal of explosive materials and assault rifles. They stated the suspects were linked to Jaish-e-Muhammad (JeM), a Pakistan-based militant group seeking to end Indian rule in Kashmir, and its local offshoot, Ansar Ghazwat-ul-Hind.

In the days following the Delhi bombing, police in Indian-administered Kashmir launched a massive crackdown, detaining more than 650 people. The Nowgam police station, the site of Friday’s tragic blast, had been at the forefront of a local investigation into posters put up by JeM, which threatened attacks on security forces and “outsiders.”

This investigation, according to police, had exposed a “white-collar terror ecosystem, involving radicalised professionals and students in contact with foreign handlers, operating from Pakistan and other countries.” In a major breakthrough, they also reported recovering nearly 3,000kg (3 tonnes) of explosive material, claiming the armed group had been stockpiling enough for a major attack.

The Enduring Kashmir Conflict

The twin blasts in Delhi and Srinagar have once again spotlighted the long-simmering conflict over Kashmir, a region claimed in its entirety by both India and Pakistan. The two nuclear-armed neighbors have fought three wars since their independence from British rule in 1947, two of them over Kashmir. The latest incidents underscore the persistent volatility of the region and the complex security challenges facing Indian authorities, even as they work to dismantle militant networks.

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