Preliminary investigation revealed that Sajeev used a frying pan — instead of drying blanks in the sunlight to remove mold and mildew — since he was reportedly short of time to attend a funeral, which required the ceremonial gun salute.
Published Mar 22, 2025 | 1:19 PM ⚊ Updated Mar 22, 2025 | 1:20 PM
The sub-inspector reportedly heated the blanks on a stove instead of drying them in the sunlight. (Representational pic/Wikimedia Commons)
Synopsis: A major tragedy was averted since the explosion — caused by heating cartridges on a stove — did not spark a blaze in the kitchen, which had LDG cylinders.
Desperate situations call for desperate measures, goes the saying.
Such desperate measures could backfire, even with a loud bang, a police sub-inspector attached to the Kochi City Armed Reserve (AR) Police Camp learned the hard way.
The officer in question, Sub-Inspector CV Sajeev, is now facing a department-level inquiry and possible disciplinary action, besides having to deal with a significantly bruised pride.
Sajeev did not do much, expect “frying” a few blank cartridge in the camp’s kitchen on 10 March. Though the blanks do not have the sharp projectile, they contain gunpowder. The junior officer, apparently, did not give much thought to the gunpowder.
The gunpowder, however, did what it was meant to do when heated up. It exploded against the sub-inspector’s wishes, creating a panic.
A major tragedy was averted since the explosion did not spark a blaze in the kitchen, which had LDG cylinders. It is not known whether such an explosive “dish” was cooked in the kitchen before.
The explosion was too loud that its reverberations reached the higher-ups. Kochi Police Commissioner Putta Vimaladitya has now ordered an inquiry into the incident, after the AR camp commandant’s probe found serious lapses on the officer’s part.
Preliminary investigation revealed that Sajeev used a frying pan — instead of drying blanks in the sunlight to remove mold and mildew — since he was reportedly short of time to attend a funeral, which required the ceremonial gun salute.
The intense heat caused the cartridges to ignite, leading to the loud explosion.
