India: Muslim was making bombs with his mother on a rooftop, both died in unexpected blast

A Muslim man was making crude bombs with his mother in his rented house when events took an unforeseen turn. A powerful explosion in a residential building in Bhubaneswar killed 26-year-old Shahnawaz Malik and his 51-year-old mother, Lizatun Bibi, who were the ones making the bombs illegally in the residential area. Two others are critically injured. The incident occurred on January 27, 2026, but didn’t make news headlines until recently, even in India. According to police officials, the explosion occurred on the house’s terrace in the Azad Nagar locality under the Airfield Police Station limits, and was loud enough to be heard across the neighborhood, triggering panic among locals.

Investigators stated that Malik was handling explosive materials when the blast occurred. Both sustained severe burn injuries and later died during treatment at separate medical facilities. Two other individuals, including a close associate of Malik, remain hospitalized with critical injuries. Police recovered gunpowder and fragments consistent with crude explosive devices from the rooftop.

Reportedly, Malik was named as the primary accused in the alleged bomb-making activity; however, because he died in the explosion, no prosecution proceedings against him will follow. Authorities are examining whether any surviving associates may face charges under relevant provisions of the Explosives Act and the Indian Penal Code. Forensic teams have collected samples from the site, and electronic evidence and CCTV footage are being analyzed as part of the ongoing investigation.

The residential property that the prime accused had rented out has also sustained major damage due to the explosion. A video that recently went viral across social networking sites had a young Kashmiri Muslim woman complaining that no one was willing to rent out their property to her after learning about her religious background. She tried her best to play the victim of discrimination based on religion in rental markets. We wonder why non-Muslims are reluctant to rent out their properties to Muslims.

This is not the first time such an incident has occurred in India. In December 2024, in the Sagarpara area of Murshidabad district, three men identified as Sakirul Sarkar (32), Mamon Mollah (30), and Mustakin Shiekh (28) were killed when crude bombs they were assembling exploded inside a house.  As the suspected bomb-makers died in the explosion, there were no subsequent legal proceedings against them, though investigations were carried out to determine whether others were involved in supplying materials.

Another fatal case was reported in October 2025 from the same district in West Bengal, where a man identified in reports as Usman Biswas died after a crude bomb allegedly detonated while he was making it at his residence. Police reportedly recovered several bombs from the site.

In July 2025, a crude bomb explosion in Rajoa village of Purba Bardhaman district resulted in one death and three injuries. The deceased has been identified as Barkat Sheikh, while the injured are Sheikh Toofan Chowdhury, Ibrahim Sheikh, and Safiq Mondol. Police indicated that the deceased was allegedly involved in preparing explosive devices inside an abandoned house. Officials also recovered bomb-making materials from the site during the investigations. It’s safe to say that by now we’ve identified the pattern of these explosions and the common denominator, but let’s see a few more examples.

Earlier, on a Friday afternoon in April 2017, at least eight people were killed in Darbarpur village of Birbhum district in West Bengal when bombs being assembled for local disputes exploded unexpectedly. While the local police withheld the names of the accused and injured from being released to the media, we know that the explosion took place in a Muslim neighborhood. The Times of India reports that Darbarpur villager Sajina Bibi was going through her daily chores one Friday afternoon when the blast shook her house. Her neighbour Lalchand Sheikh said: “There was tension in the two neighbouring areas of Tantipara and Kajipara for the last two days with occasional clashes.”

Outside West Bengal, in 2019, an explosion in Bhadohi district in Uttar Pradesh at a carpet manufacturing unit allegedly involved the illegal production and storage of explosive materials. The blast killed 12 people and injured several others. The blast occurred in a building owned by Kaliyar Mansoori, who was among those killed when the explosive materials detonated unexpectedly. Police also identified his sons, Irfan Mansoori and Abid Mansoori, as casualties in the explosion. Others who died in this blast were identified as Kalam, Gaffar, Azad, Israfil, Masawwar, Sukran, Qadir, and Ata-ur. There was substantial damage to the premises and neighboring structures.

Taken together, these incidents point to a recurring pattern in which Muslim individuals have been found involved in the illegal preparation or storage of crude explosive devices. In cases where operators or facilitators survive such blasts, police have registered cases and arrested suspects under the Explosives Act and other relevant criminal provisions.

Importantly, in several of these instances, the individuals involved were not reported to be members of any major terrorist organization. They were described as local residents, part of ordinary community life, and in many cases those around them did not previously perceive them as jihadis. The Bhubaneswar blast has once again drawn attention to the risks posed by jihadi elements growing within residential neighborhoods of Indian cities.