'Big Lapse': Kashmir Politicians On Nowgam Blast; BJP Seeks Jobs For Kin Of Victims
The politicians have also sought a thorough probe into the incident, which killed nine persons and injured 32.
Published : November 17, 2025 at 5:41 PM IST
Srinagar: The National Conference MP Aga Ruhullah Mehdi and the opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) on Monday said that there had been “big lapses” in the Nowgam Police Station blast and sought a probe into the explosion that killed 9 persons and injured 32.
“This is a big lapse. How was a huge quantity of explosive material kept within a populated area? Why was it not handled professionally? Who is responsible… It must be investigated, and those responsible must be punished. The government must explain why such a big lapse happened,” he told reporters.
Ruhullah said that the government must compensate the families of the victims of the blast “even though no compensation is a replacement for life”. The NC MP said that he will write to the LG and the Government of India to provide a job to the next of kin of the tailor, who was also killed in the explosion.
On Friday night (14 November), a huge explosion took place inside the police station in the Nogwam locality on the outskirts of Srinagar. Jammu Kashmir Police Chief Nalin Prabhat said the explosion took place from the ammonium nitrate that was stocked in the station after its confiscation by the Jammu and Kashmir police from Faridabad, Haryana, from Dr Muzamil Shakeel, one of the accused in the interstate terror module.
Prabhat, in a brief press conference on Saturday, ruled out any terror angle in the blast and said the blast was accidental and that the police will investigate the cause of the accident.
Ruhullah also said that the investigating agencies that are probing the Delhi blasts should not harm innocents or accuse suspects. “A proper investigation must take place, and all those involved must be punished, but innocents must not be harmed,” he said.
The opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) also questioned the police for stocking “3000 kg of ammonium nitrate for four days” and extracting samples from it for forensic analysis.
“This is a big lapse by the police. There should be an investigation into why such a huge quantity was kept in the station for so long. I met the family of the Naib Tehslidar in Soibugh, and they said, ‘Why was he taken there when he didn't know how to seal the ammonium nitrate?’. So there has been a huge lapse of judgment, and heads should roll; accountability needs to be followed. Which officers of the police directed this sealing for three long days? It was an accident waiting to happen,” Iltija Mufti, PDP functionary and media advisor of Mehbooba Mufti, told reporters.
BJP leader and Leader of Opposition in the Jammu and Kashmir legislative assembly Sunil Sharma said that the blast wasn't a direct terror attack, but the officials were sealing the explosive material, which was confiscated in a terrorist-linked investigation.
Sharma urged that the LG Manoj Sinha must provide jobs to the next of kin of the victims of the police and the victims of terrorism.
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