K’taka: Jilted lover dies in car bomb blast after kidnapping woman

Tumakuru (Karnataka), June 27 (IANS) A jilted lover allegedly died after detonating a country-made bomb inside a car following the alleged abduction of a young woman on National Highway-48 near Kallambella in Karnataka’s Tumakuru district on Saturday.

The woman and the cab driver narrowly escaped the explosion, while police recovered another live country-made bomb from the spot.

The deceased has been identified as 30-year-old Nagendra, a native of Ankola in Karwar district. Tumakuru Superintendent of Police Ashok Venkat visited the spot and inspected the scene.

According to the police, Nagendra and Ramya, both natives of the Ankola region, had been in a relationship for nearly eight years. Ramya, a laboratory technician at Rajiv Gandhi University in Bengaluru, reportedly rejected Nagendra’s marriage proposal due to differences between the two.

Police said Nagendra allegedly hired a cab and went to the paying guest accommodation where Ramya was staying in Bengaluru before forcibly taking her away. After witnessing the incident, one of Ramya’s friends lodged a missing person complaint with the Siddapura Police Station in Bengaluru.

During the journey on National Highway-48, an argument reportedly broke out between the two, during which Nagendra allegedly assaulted Ramya and struck her on the head. Ramya managed to jump out of the moving vehicle, prompting the cab driver to stop and rush to her aid.

Police said Nagendra then locked himself inside the car and detonated a country-made bomb, killing himself on the spot. The force of the explosion completely mangled the vehicle.

The cab driver, identified as Praveen, has given a slightly different version, and his statements are being verified by the police. He has told police that the vehicle had been booked through Uber in Nagendra’s name.

He said the journey had been uneventful until they reached Kallambella, when he received a phone call from Ankola informing him that the woman had allegedly been kidnapped.

Praveen further claimed that Nagendra attacked Ramya with a knife during the argument. He stopped the vehicle on the roadside and helped the woman escape by sending her away on a passing motorcycle. According to him, Ramya warned that Nagendra was carrying bombs.

The driver told investigators that when he approached the car, Nagendra was holding a country-made bomb. He allegedly managed to snatch one explosive from him and throw it away. Nagendra then lit another bomb, triggering the fatal explosion.

Police recovered the unexploded bomb from the scene and have launched an investigation into how Nagendra procured the explosives.

Officials from Siddapura Police in Bengaluru and Kallambella Police in Tumakuru are jointly investigating the case. Teams from Bengaluru have also reached the spot to assist in the probe. Police are yet to issue an official detailed statement, and further investigation is underway.

–IANS

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