Recurring crude bomb attacks trigger panic in Kannur

KANNUR: Ahead of the Lok Sabha election results, recurring incidents of crude bomb attacks in the interiors of Payyannur in the district, notorious for CPM-BJP clashes, have triggered panic among the public.

In the past few days, many such cases were reported from the locality but the police are clueless about those behind it.

It was in the early hours of Friday that a steel bomb was hurled at the house of CPM sympathizer Vattakkovval Kunjiraman at Edat in the suburbs of Payyannur. The bomb, hurled at the house from the nearby road, hit the branch of a tree in the compound and fell on the courtyard before exploding. Though nobody was injured, the glasses of the windowpanes of the house were damaged.

Though Kunjiraman is a CPM supporter, his son Vinod is a BJP sympathizer, said local residents. It is quite possible that the aim was to create some terror in the family without causing any injury, according to police sources.

In the past few days, a few such cases were reported from other places as well. It was earlier this week that two cases were reported from Karayil and Korom, where the houses of two BJP workers had come under attack. However, nobody was injured in those incidents as well.

Though the bomb squad and police have intensified searches, they are yet to get any trace.

With the Lok Sabha election results set be announced on May 23, police have taken the attacks seriously. They said they have taken all measures to prevent the situation from escalating further.

Thaliparamba DSP P K Krishnan said no political parties or cadres have claimed any role in the recurrent incidents of crude bomb attack and there were no evidences to directly point fingers towards anyone.

“Since the attacks were reported in the wee hours, that too in the interior areas, we don’t have any CCTV footage. But we are investigating various possibilities and have strengthened police patrolling in the sensitive areas,” he said.

Since the same kind of bombs are used in all these attacks, police have not ruled out the possibility of the same group behind all these attacks but they have no clarity as to who are behind it.