Belur explosion cause: ‘Chocolate bombs used in celebrations’

Argha Mukhopadhyay, an officer attached with the Belur police station, said they were looking at two possibilities.

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“On Friday, there was a football match between Mohun Bagan and Salgaoncar. The incident took place during the match. Mohun Bagan scored two goals. A Bagan supporter, who did not know what the after effects could be, may have been behind the explosion,” he claimed.

“Another possibility is the a sweeper or a security guard is responsible for this. So far, we have interrogated 14 sweepers and security guards. Investigation is on but so far we have found nothing. We are looking at all possible angles,” Mukhopadhyay said.

Maintaining that security bas been beefed up in the Math premises, a Howrah Police Commissionerate officer said: “There was an outpost here. Now, at least 4 to 5 police officers will be present here round the clock. Senior officers will also visit regularly.

Math authorities, meanwhile, said they plan to upgrade the security system according to the suggestions of the police. “A number of CCTV cameras have been installed here but there wasn’t any at the shoe stall. More CCTVs will be installed. We will install a scanner at the entry gate where visitors will be frisked,” said Shantanu Maharaj at Belur Math.

He added: “A cloakroom will also be built at the entrance where people would deposit their belongings before they enter. A guard rail is also being built and the number of private security guards increased.”

Maintaining that there was nothing to worry about, Shantanu Maharaj said: “We had heard a sound on April 3 around 5.45 pm near the shoe stall. The police later found out that it was the sound of a fire cracker exploding. Because of prompt action by the police, visitors didn’t panic.”

“An official from the Ministry of Coal and the district magistrate also visited the Math that day. We didn’t even realise something was wrong till the police told us that they had cordoned off the place because of the broken window pane,” he added.

“On an average, we get a daily footfall of 5,000 and on Sundays, it is over 10,000. The footfall was normal yesterday and today being a Sunday, the number has crossed the 10,000 mark. The turnout showed the incident was hardly of any consequence,” Shantanu Maharaj said.