A blast at an under-construction building in east Bengaluru that seriously injured two workers is being investigated as a possible improvised explosive device attack, but police have not yet confirmed the nature of the device. The Indian Express reported that preliminary findings pointed to an IED disguised as a torch, while Bengaluru Police said forensic examination was still under way.
The incident occurred on October 20 at a seven-storey construction site in Pulakeshinagar. Suraj Kumar, 28, a painter from Gorakhpur in Uttar Pradesh, suffered the most serious injuries, including the loss of two fingers, burns and shrapnel wounds to his face, head and chest. Alauddin Barbhaij, 53, a security guard from Dimapur in Assam, sustained a minor injury near his eye.
According to police sources cited by The Indian Express, a parcel was delivered to the ground floor of the site by an unidentified person. CCTV footage reportedly showed Barbhaij collecting it. The guard then contacted Kumar, who was working on the seventh floor, for assistance in activating what appeared to be a torch. The device reportedly exploded in Kumar’s hands when he tried to switch it on.
The newspaper reported that investigators suspected the torch contained a small quantity of explosive material and ball bearings that may have caused the shrapnel injuries and damaged nearby windows. Sources described the device as having been configured to target an individual rather than cause a large-scale explosion. These details remain part of the preliminary investigation and have not been officially confirmed by Bengaluru Police.
Kumar’s brother, Abhi Kumar, told The Indian Express that the workers had been at the building for only two days and did not know anyone there personally. He said workers rushed Suraj to hospital immediately after finding him bleeding on the floor. The account underscores the vulnerability of labourers at construction sites, where workers may handle or approach unfamiliar packages and equipment without knowing their contents.
Bengaluru Police began questioning Barbhaij after he was discharged from Minto Eye Hospital. Police sources said he had given contradictory versions of the incident. The police have not publicly identified a suspect or confirmed who delivered the parcel. The circumstances surrounding the package, its intended recipient and the reason it was brought to the site remain under investigation.
Police Commissioner Seemant Kumar said authorities were awaiting the final forensic examination to establish the nature of the device. He said there was no need for panic at that stage, while adding that the police were maintaining heightened alert during the festive season and were not ruling out any possibility. Karnataka Home Minister Priyank Kharge separately said material recovered from the site had been sent for forensic examination.
The forensic report is expected to determine whether the object was an improvised explosive device and clarify the composition of the material recovered from the construction site. Until those findings are available, the reported IED theory remains an investigative claim rather than an established fact.
