Son & brother of terror accused among 9 killed in Bengal firecracker warehouse blast

Kolkata, Aug 29: The nine people killed in the blast at an illegal firecracker warehouse at Duttapukur in West Bengal’s North 24 Parganas district include the son of a terror accused currently serving judicial custody at one of the correctional homes in the state.

Two persons killed in the blast have been identified as Ronie Sheikh and Jirat Sheikh. Ronie Sheikh is the son of Isha Khan, an accused in the blast at Nimtita Railway Station in Murshidabad district in February 2021.

Also killed in the blast on Sunday morning was Jirat Sheikh, the younger brother of Isha Khan, who is currently serving judicial custody after being arrested by the National Investigation Agency (NIA) for his connection with the Nimtita Railway Station blast.

As per preliminary investigation by the police in the Duttapukur blast on Sunday, Jirat Sheikh was the main man who used to supply material for manufacturing of firecrackers to Keramat Sheikh, the principal partner of the said illegal firecracker warehouse, where the blast took place.

Confusion continues to prevail over the whereabouts of Keramat Sheikh since the time of the blast. As per police records he is missing, a section of the local people claimed that he also died in the blast.

Of the nine dead in the blast, four are from Suti, a town in Murshidabad district, which is also the native town of Isha Khan, Ronie Sheikh and Jirat Sheikh.

Isha Khan has already got the approval from the court to be released on parole for performing the last rituals of his deceased son and brother. The court has ordered that he might be allowed to perform the rituals under blanket security cover and again brought back to the correctional home at the end of it.

Already two separate public interest litigations have been filed at the Calcutta High Court demanding NIA prove in the Duttapukur firecracker utility blast. The petitioners have claimed that from the nature and the impact of the blast it seems that it was not a result of the blast of ordinary firecrackers. The PILs are scheduled to come up for hearing on Tuesday.