On Wednesday, the Madhya Pradesh police detained the wife of prime accused Rajendra Kasawa, who is wanted in connection with last week’s massive blast in Petlawad town in Jhabua, Madhya Pradesh.
The blast left 89 people dead, several injured and destroyed the building which stored explosives and the adjacent Sethia restaurant.
We have detained his (Rajendra Kasawa) wife Pramila and interrogating her to find out the whereabouts of Kasawa.
— District Superintendent of Police, GG Pandey
Kasawa has a reward of Rs 1 lakh on his head and has been booked under section 304 (manslaughter) of IPC and other two other sections of Explosive Substances Act after the blast.
Conflicting reports have appeared in the media about whether Kasawa had license for use and storage of the explosive material.
Other Family Members of Kasawa Also Detained
On Monday, Kasawa’s two brothers – Narendra and Phoolchand – were taken into custody, which the police believes will give definitive clues about the main accused.
According to Seema Alawa, District Additional Superintendent of Police (ASP) and head of Special Investigation Team formed to arrest Kasawa, some other family members of the accused have also been detained.
She, however, refused to disclose their names.
According to a senior official probing the incident, Kasawa’s phone was on till Saturday afternoon and he used it to contest family members.
(With inputs from PTI)
(At The Quint, we question everything. Play an active role in shaping our journalism by becoming a member today.)