Bengaluru Cafe Explosion: Siddaramaiah Confirms IED Blast, Assures Strict Action

At least five people were injured in a blast at at the Rameshwaram Cafe in Bengaluru's IT hub Whitefield on Friday. Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah said the blast was due to an improvised explosive device (IED).
Talking to reporters at Hassan, the Chief Minister said that he has been informed that it is an improvised explosive device (IED) blast.

"CCTV footage is being examined and police are carrying out an investigation. I have asked the Home Minister (Dr. G. Parameshwara) to visit the spot," he said.

The Chief Minister said that the explosive was kept in a bag abandoned by the suspect.

"The police are gathering information from the cashier about the person, as he had got the token from the cashier, got the food, and later kept the bag near the hand wash.

"These incidents have taken place at all times. They should not happen. The state had not witnessed such an incident for a long time. The last incident was the Mangaluru cooker blast incident, it was also a small incident. This is the first incident after the Congress government came to power," CM Siddaramaiah said.

He asserted that the culprits will be found and strict action will be taken against them, and there should not be any politics in these matters.


"We will initiate harsh action," he stated.

State DGP Alok Mohan said that they had contacted the National Investigation Agency (NIA) and Intelligence Bureau (IB), and police and the FSL teams are conducting an investigation at the site.

The blast took place at around 1.15 p.m. when many people had gathered at the cafe, located in the Kundalahalli Gate area near Whitefield, as it was the lunch hour.


On the incident, taking to social media, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MP from Bengaluru South constituency, who is also the national president of BJP Yuva Morcha, said: "Just spoke to Rameshwaram Cafe founder Sri Nagaraj about the blast in his restaurant. He told me that the blast occurred because of a bag that was left by a customer, and it was not any cylinder explosion. One of their employees is injured. It seems to be a clear case of a bomb blast. Bengaluru demands clear answers from Chief Minister Siddaramaiah." - IANS