Jhabua blast: Retired headmaster rented shop to former student, paid with life

On Saturday, Rathod’s son Mukesh called up Kaswa as soon as he saw smoke coming out of the shop. In the 15-odd minutes that it took for the key to arrive, a lot of curious onlookers — including daily wage earners, people having breakfast outside Sethiya Sweets and vegetable vendors — had gathered close to spot.

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The shutter opened with a massive explosion tossing people high in the air with its impact and killing most of them.

It wasn’t clear as to who opened the shutter — Mukesh or somebody else. Though some bodies were yet to be identified, it was clear that Mukesh, his wife Seema, father Gangaram and his elder brother’s wife Kavita were killed in the explosion.

Gangaram Rathod’s wife Chandrakanta and their three grand children survived the blast. However, one of the children was reported to be critical and was referred to another private hospital in Indore Sunday.

“He should have alerted us about the presence of explosives in his shop after getting the phone call, that would have saved lives of not only our family members but also onlookers who could have moved to safety,’’ said a relative.

The owners of the adjacent shop — Sethiya Sweets — also bore the brunt of the blast. It was  initially identified by Home Minister Babulal Gaur and others as the place where LPG cylinders exploded.

Shop owner Mukesh Sethiya’s body was found trapped between a beam and a collapsed wall of his own shop. “He was probably killed after glass shards from the cash counter pierced him,’’ said Paras, his younger brother.