Kerala police not likely to slap UAPA on the accused in Kochi explosion case

Thiruvananthapuram: The left-front government in Kerala will not slap the UAPA against the accused in the explosion at a prayer meeting of Jehovah's Witnesses in Kochi last year that claimed eight lives.

The police had initially invoked sections of Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act against the accused Dominic Martin as the incident was initially suspected as a terror act.

However during the investigations, the police could not establish a terrorism angle. Hence the government decided not to invoke UAPA. The accused will face various offences under the IPC and Explosives Act.

The government's decision was influenced by the CPM's objections against UAPA.

It was on October 29 last year that the state was rocked by the explosion. Though only two persons died initially, the death toll climbed to six over in the next few days.

Martin of Kochi was a former member of the Jehovah's Witnesses believers' group. He later left it owing to ideological differences. He had triggered the explosion using remote control and improvised explosive devices.

The incident had initially sparked off major political row in Kerala with the BJP trying to frame the incident as one related to the Israel-Palestine conflict, especially since the Congress and CPM were holding Palestine solidarity meetings in Kerala