Blast, fire in Maharashtra chemical plant
Palghar : A powerful blast followed by a massive fire ripped through a private chemical manufacturing company in the Tarapur MIDC area here late on Thursday night.
According to Palghar Control police official Pramod Pawar, the blast occurred around 11.15 p.m. in the chemical company's plant here. There are no immediate reports of casualties in the incident as firefighting efforts were taken up.
"The blast, cause of which is not yet clear was so deafening that it was heard in a radius of 10 km, and houses and buildings were shaken," Pawar said.
The blast, prima facie is suspected to have occurred in a boiler room and efforts were on to douse the fire in the factory precincts.
Local eyewitnesses said that the explosion, "sounding like a huge bomb" happened when many were preparing to retire for the night.
However, scared and shaken by the explosion, many feared it was an earthquake and hundreds rushed out on to the streets and sat there.
Further details are awaited and senior civil and police officials besides disaster management teams have rushed to the spot.
Let the Truth be known. If you read VB and like VB, please be a VB Supporter and Help us deliver the Truth to one and all.
Mangaluru Mob Lynching: Police tried to bury case, suspension order confirms cover-up attempt
_vb_37.jpeg)
Mangaluru: The police department’s failure in handling the brutal mob lynching of Wayanad native Ashraf in Mangaluru has now been officially confirmed, with a suspension order of three officers clearly exposing an attempted cover-up by officers of the Mangaluru Rural Police Station.
The suspension order, issued by Mangaluru City Police Commissioner Anupam Agarwal, holds three personnel — Inspector Shivakumar K.R., Head Constable Chandra P., and Civil Police Constable Yallaling — responsible for dereliction of duty in the chilling lynching case. Their actions, or lack thereof, reflect a shocking level of indifference, negligence, and an attempt to mislead both the public and higher authorities.
Despite clear signs and local testimonies pointing to a mob lynching, , the police had initially tried to portray it as an unnatural death. This deliberate misrepresentation appears to be a calculated move to water down the severity of the crime. This has now been confirmed, with a clear explanation provided in the suspension order.
The suspension order points out that the three officers failed to carry out their basic duty — to inform superiors and to register a case based on the gravity of the crime. Instead, they chose to downplay the matter, giving the accused more time to escape scrutiny.
What the Suspension Order Reveals:
The facts outlined in the suspension order are damning. On April 27, between 2:30 PM and 5:30 PM, an unidentified body was found near a field behind Bhatra Kallurti Daivasthana in Kudupu. A complaint led to a case being filed as a simple UDR by the Mangaluru Rural Police Station.
According to the suspension order, the reason for suspending the three officials has been clearly stated. Based on a report by the Assistant Commissioner of Police, South Sub-Division, Mangaluru City Police, a complaint was registered on 27 April between 2:30 PM and 5:30 PM regarding an unidentified body found near the field behind Bhatra Kallurti Daivasthana in Kudupu village, Mangaluru taluk. The case was registered at the Mangaluru Rural Police Station as an Unnatural Death Report (UDR). Following a complaint filed by a person named Deepak on 28 April, a case (Crime No. 37/2025) was registered under sections 189(2), 191(1)(3), 115(2), 103(2), 240, and 190 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS).
According to Deepak’s phone call to the police, during a cricket match being played on the field, a group of players and spectators attacked the unidentified individual. The inspector and staff of Mangaluru Rural Police Station had received this information.
Inspector Shivakumar K.R. reportedly chose not to alert his superiors and went ahead with registering it as a UDR, essentially trying to sweep the incident under the carpet.
Head Constable Chandra P., attached to the Intelligence Wing, was informed by Deepak of the Mangaluru Traffic East Police Station but failed to follow up or report the matter further.
Civil Police Constable Yallaling, who was on beat duty at the site of the match, also failed to report the mob violence he witnessed, thus compounding the department’s collective failure.
These officers weren’t just negligent — they actively suppressed evidence of a murder. Despite having access to eyewitness information and being present at the scene, none of them acted to protect the victim or uphold the law.
All three have now been suspended for gross negligence and misconduct. However, the suspension alone does not undo the damage caused — valuable hours were lost, and the integrity of the investigation was compromised.
_vb_14.jpeg)
