Coimbatore: Main accused in firecracker explosion case arrested

COIMBATORE: The Tamil Nadu police on Monday arrested the main accused of the Virudhunagar firecracker factory blast case, which claimed the lives of 23 people on April 19.

According to Virudhunagar Superintendent of Police, N Shreenatha, the main accused, Easwari, who was the factory owner and former Panchayat President, was arrested in Coimbatore

"In connection with the firecracker factory explosion that claimed 25 lives, the factory owner, who had been absconding, has been arrested by the police. The main accused, factory owner and former Panchayat President Easwari, has been arrested by a special police team in Coimbatore," said Virudhunagar SP N Shreenatha.

Meanwhile, last week, relatives of the victims refused to receive the bodies and staged a road blockade protest on Monday, demanding compensation of Rs 20 lakh for each victim's family.

On the day of the accident, District Collector NO Sukhaputra said that a second blast during rescue operations injured 13 personnel, adding that of the 23 dead, 19 bodies were identified, 16 women and 3 men. Meanwhile, the post-mortem examinations of the 23 workers who were killed in the accident a day ago continued on April 20 at the Government Hospital and Medical College in the district.

Senior police officials said that at around 3 pm on April 19, a firework unit near Kattanarpatti reportedly blasted. On receiving information from the public, police, fire and rescue personnel rushed to the spot and started dousing the fire. Rescued individuals were shifted to a nearby government hospital.

Vachakarapatti police are investigating the incident.