The city police on Sunday caught two persons for selling explosive material illegally. The accused had violated the licence condition and were transporting a huge quantity of explosive material in a car.
Thirteen-hundred gelatin sticks, 2,825 detonators, a car and Rs.7,000 in cash were seized from the arrested persons – M. Madhusudhan Reddy, 33, of Medipally and G. Ramesh, 40, of Tukaramgate.
Reddy, a contractor, obtained the licence in the name of Mahalaxmi Enterprise from the Chief Controller of Explosives (CCE). As per licence condition, he can purchase the blasting material such as gelatin sticks and detonators and use it for blasting rocks at buildings under construction with prior permission from officials concerned.
He used to earn Rs.15,000 to Rs.20,000 every month while executing blasts at construction sites without necessary permits. When he came to deliver the material to Ramesh and others at a site near Nagarjuna Circle on Road No. 1 in Banjara Hills, police caught him and seized the material.
After being grilled, Reddy admitted that he brought explosives from persons indulging in illegal quarrying. “We are treating the case seriously as such a huge quantity of illegal consignment is a cause for concern. We are trying to probe where and to whom the explosives were supplied as there is a chance of it going into the hands of anti-social elements,” Task Force Additional Deputy Commissioner of Police P. Rameshaiah said here, on Sunday.
Rules stipulate that explosives have to be carried in a specially equipped vehicle but the accused disregarding the safety norms were transporting them in a car. “Any slight pressure or electrical impulse could have caused an explosion on the main road itself,” Mr. Rameshaiah explained.
A letter will also be addressed to the CCE in Nagapur to cancel the licence of Reddy for violating the norms. North Zone Task Force Inspector A.P. Anand Kumar said Reddy sold explosives to some persons in Cyberabad. He used to get the material from his native place at Valigonda in Nalgonda district and store it in a godown in Medipally on the suburbs.
