National Conference president and former Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Farooq Abdullah has called for a thorough and independent investigation into the accidental blast at the Nowgam police station, which tragically killed nine personnel and injured 32 others.

Abdullah openly criticized the handling of the explosive material, stating: “This is our mistake, those who understand this explosive better, we should have talked to them first about how to deal with it instead of trying to handle it ourselves, you saw the result, nine people lost their lives.”

Key Points of Abdullah’s Statement

• Blame on Inadequate Expertise: Abdullah’s core argument is that the local authorities and personnel lacked the proper expertise to handle the highly unstable explosive material, leading to the catastrophic accident.
• Demand for Accountability: He urged authorities to conduct a deeper probe to establish responsibility and prevent similar incidents, stating, “There is a need for a thorough investigation and study of this.”
• Link to Anti-Kashmiri Suspicion: Abdullah connected the fallout of the Nowgam explosion to the atmosphere of suspicion and hostility that Kashmiri residents are facing across the country following the Delhi Red Fort blast. He questioned the radicalization of the involved individuals, stating, “ask those who are responsible why these doctors had to take this path? What was the reason?”

Context of the Nowgam Explosion

The blast occurred late Friday night inside the Nowgam Police Station when a specialized team was attempting to process and extract samples from a massive cache of explosives.

Incident Detail	Information
Cause (Official)	Inadvertent/Accidental explosion during a mandated forensic procedure (DGP Nalin Prabhat). MHA attributed it to the “highly unstable nature” of the material.
Material Involved	360 kg of explosive chemicals (part of a 2,900 kg haul of IED-making material, including ammonium nitrate) seized from Faridabad, Haryana.
Casualties	Nine personnel killed, including an SIA officer, three FSL personnel, two crime-scene photographers, two revenue officials, and one tailor. 32 others were injured.
Investigation Link	The explosive material was case property in the investigation of a “white-collar terror module” linked to the Delhi Red Fort blast (Nov 10), which involved several doctors from Al-Falah University in Faridabad.

Export to Sheets

The Jammu and Kashmir DGP, Nalin Prabhat, confirmed that the material was an unstable and sensitive recovery kept in an open area of the police station yard, and the explosion occurred during the collection of samples for forensic examination. The MHA has ordered an investigation into the cause of the incident.