Toll Rises to Six in Jehovah’s Witnesses Blasts in Kerala

The death toll from the devastating blasts that occurred during a Jehovah’s Witnesses gathering in Kerala’s Ernakulam district on October 29 has risen to six, according to a report by PTI. The latest fatality was a 24-year-old man named Praveen Pradeep, who succumbed to his burns at a private hospital on Thursday, as reported by Mathrubhumi. Praveen had been receiving critical care in the hospital’s intensive care unit.

The tragedy had already claimed the lives of Praveen’s mother, who passed away on November 11 due to serious injuries sustained in the explosions, and his sister Libina, who died on October 30, a day after the blasts, as reported by PTI. Praveen’s brother Rahul was also injured in the blasts and is currently undergoing treatment.

The incident unfolded when two powerful explosions rocked a convention centre where the Jehovah’s Witnesses group was gathered in the Kalamassery municipality area. The explosions caused widespread destruction and panic among the attendees.

Shortly after the blasts, a man named Dominic Martin surrendered to the police in the Thrissur district, claiming responsibility for the attack. Martin, a resident of Ernakulam, expressed his outrage towards the teachings of the Jehovah’s Witnesses congregation in a social media post, which he later deleted.

In his post, Martin revealed that he had been a member of the congregation for 16 years but became disillusioned with their teachings, which he deemed “anti-national.” He alleged that the denomination’s leadership ignored his pleas to stop preaching practices that discouraged children from accepting sweets and food from their classmates, and that also discouraged members from singing the national anthem.

Martin, who believed that such teachings were dangerous, felt compelled to take action. Consequently, he was arrested on charges of murder, as well as under the provisions of the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act and Explosives Act.

A Kerala court remanded Martin to judicial custody until November 29, as reported by ANI on Tuesday.

Also read: Kerala blasts: 54 cases filed over allegedly inflammatory social media posts