Nine Dead, 32 Injured in Accidental Explosion at Kashmir Police Station, Terror Angle Ruled Out

November 15, 2025

Srinagar: Nine people have been killed and 32 injured after a stockpile of confiscated explosives accidentally blew up at a police station in Indian-administered Kashmir, police said.

It comes just days after a car blast killed several people in Delhi, in what the government has called a “terror incident”.

The explosion happened on Friday evening at Nowgam police station, and the explosives were seized from Faridabad in the northern state of Haryana earlier in the week.

The region’s director general of police, Nalin Prabhat, said the explosives were being sent for forensic examination – but due to a “very unfortunate” mishap during handling they detonated at around 23:20 local time (17:50 GMT).

Police Rule Out Terror Angle

Police said in a statement that it was an accidental detonation, not a terrorist attack. “Any other speculation into the cause of this incident is unnecessary,” the police chief told journalists.

The police station suffered severe damage in the explosion and adjacent buildings were also affected, he said.

Multiple vehicles were “engulfed in flames and reduced to charred husks, with debris scattered across the site”, according to a police statement.

“The intensity of the blast was such that some body parts were recovered from nearby houses, around 100-200 metres away from the police station,” a source told Reuters news agency.

Victims, Response, and Inquiry Ordered

Most of the victims were police officers, along with forensic personnel, two crime scene photographers, and a tailor who was with the team.

Manoj Sinha, the region’s Lieutenant Governor appointed by the Indian government, expressed his condolences and said he had ordered an investigation.

“I have ordered a probe to ascertain the cause of the accidental explosion. Deeply anguished by the loss of precious lives due to extremely tragic accidental blast at Nowgam police station in Srinagar. My condolences to the bereaved families. I pray for speedy recovery of the injured,” he wrote on social media.

J&K Govt Dismisses Terror Links

Jammu and Kashmir Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha has ordered a probe into the “accidental” explosion that ripped through the Nowgam police station in Srinagar late on Friday (November 14, 2025), killing nine people and injuring 32 others. The J&K Police on Saturday (November 15) dismissed claims of involvement by any Pakistan-based terror group, including JeM’s PAFF, stating the explosion occurred “accidentally”.

Blast During Handling of Seized Explosives

The explosion took place while authorities were extracting samples from a cache of explosives confiscated from Haryana’s Faridabad in connection with an inter-State terror module case. J&K Director General of Police, Nalin Prabhat, said, “Due to the sensitive and unstable nature of the recovered material, the sampling and examination were being carried out with extreme caution. Despite all precautions, an accidental blast occurred last night.” Union Home Ministry joint secretary Prashant Lokhande said the cause of the explosion is still being ascertained, adding that the material was being transported as per standard procedure.

Political Reactions

Jammu and Kashmir Deputy Chief Minister Surinder Choudhary expressed grief and said Pakistan-sponsored terrorism must end now. “This is another chapter in the violence that has caused death and destruction in Jammu and Kashmir over the past 35 years,” he said.