Chennai: A day after an unidentified object, suspected to be a country bomb found in the Tiruporur Gangai Kondan temple pond, blew up and killed a person, another man, who was among the four injured, died without responding to treatment at the Chengalpet government hospital in the early hours of Monday taking the toll to two. Meanwhile, on Monday morning during the spot investigation, police secured another look-alike rocket launcher explosive material near the temple tank.
According to sources, on Sunday evening at around 3, a group of three men gathered outside the Gangai Kondan temple in Manampathi village in Thiruporur to celebrate the birthday of their friend, when a box fell from a nearby tree. They thought it could be treasure hidden in the tree by those who had deepened the pond. When they couldn't force open the box, they tried to kick it open. That's when it exploded.
The explosion killed 22-year-old Suriya and badly injured Dileepan, 25, with Jayaram, 28, Yuvaraj, 25, and Thirumal, 22. The four men were admitted to the Chengalpet hospital where Dilip Raghavan succumbed to injuries at around 3.30 on Monday morning.
Meanwhile, Kanchipuram SP, Kannan, Kanchipuram Range DIG, Then Mozhi and North zone IG, Nagarajan visited the spot with a team of police personnel and thoroughly inspected the temple. A team of forensic experts and bomb squad personnel inspected the premises and collected samples following the explosion at a spot abutting a pond, right in the backyard of Sri Gangai Amman temple at Manamathi village.
During the inspection, the officials secured another rocket launcher like explosive material near the temple tank slightly buried. It is said that the object is used in Army cannons and also had a serial number. Further inquiries are being carried out with the help of the number. Police suspected it could belong to the Hanumanthapuram army training centre near Manmapathi village. Several aspects related to the explosion, like its cause, the nature of explosive material, and how it landed on the premises of the temple and what triggered it were sketchy and were being probed by police. Another version, according to locals, was that a scrap shop was located near the temple and it might be the reason for the presence of such metallic explosive materials.
Police, however, dismissing the rumours of terror angle clarified that the incident was not connected with the current alert in the state following inputs of terrorists having entered Tamil Nadu.
