Playing with fireworks

What was supposed to mark the beginning of the annual Theyyam season at the Anjoottambalam Veerarkavu temple in Kasaragod turned tragic with an allegedly unauthorised fireworks display leading to a massive explosion causing serious injury to over a 100 people. C.P. Sajit reports how the tragedy unfolded

Chaliyan Theru, and about two kilometres from the Neeleswaram bus stand in Kasaragod, near the National Highway-66, is tranquil on a normal day. 

However, on October 29, the narrow road to the Anjoottambalam Veerarkavu temple in Chaliyan Theru became a hive of activity. The street was teeming with people keen on witnessing Kaliyattam, an annual festival that marks the beginning of the Theyyam season in north Malabar. Theyyam is a ritualistic performance linked to the animistic deities of the region. 

This year, the temple committee had made elaborate arrangements for the two-day Kaliyattam, since attendance at the festival has steadily grown over the years. On October 29, the temple ritual and the over three-centuries-old tradition got abruptly halted due to an explosion triggered by firecrackers stored on the temple compound. The blast left 154 injured, with 102 admitted to hospitals in Kannur, Kasaragod, Kozhikode, and Mangaluru with severe burns.

Jagadeesh Kumar, a temple committee member, said everything was proceeding smoothly, with a feast arranged for over 1,000 people. By 9.30 p.m., the temple premises, spread over 1.5 acres, was packed with devotees. After dining, people had gathered in front of the Kottam (temple).

Behind the temple lies the Kavu, a sacred grove, along with a small vacant space. Most people were within the temple compound; some were standing near the storeroom. “Suddenly, an explosion ripped through the storeroom, transforming it into a fireball within seconds,” recalled 20-year-old Mithun Madhan, currently undergoing treatment at the Kanhangad district hospital in Kasaragod.

Madhan, a resident of Kovil in Cheravathur, about seven kilometres from the temple, was attending the festival for the first time with his neighbour Sreehari and friend Alan Joseph, who had arrived from Ernakulam. Both friends suffered severe burns and are in the ICU wards at hospitals in Kannur and Mangaluru. 

“We saw two people burst crackers outside the storeroom,” he said. “One was bringing the crackers from the storeroom. We made clear our reservation about bursting them so near the storeroom.”

According to Madhan, one of the men was lighting the crackers with a burning cigarette or beedi. Shortly after, another person arrived and set off a chain of firecrackers outside the storeroom. “While both my friends stayed near the front door of the storeroom, I took shelter behind a pillar a few metres away, as the noise was deafening,” he said.

Suddenly, there was a massive explosion, and he felt a burning sensation in his hand. “I peeped out, and a fireball burnt my face and neck,” he recounted tearfully. “The pillar saved me,” Madhan said. 

Amalraj and Abhinanda, both from Cheravathur, and admitted to the same ward at the Kanhangad district hospital, said they were only a few metres from the storeroom when the fire broke out. They suffered burns on their hands, back, and neck. “People started to run, and we were in pain,” recalls Amalraj.

For Sanoj and his family from Karivellur, the festival had been a long-awaited family reunion. Sanoj, his two children, his brother Sooraj, Sooraj’s child, and their father all sustained severe burns and were admitted to A.J. Hospital in Mangaluru. “I returned from Kuwait three days ago, hoping to spend time with my children and family,” Sanoj said. “I tried to shield my children, but they too sustained burns.”

“I was holding my six-year-old child but she got pulled out of my hand under the impact of the blast,” said Sooraj, who had arrived from Bengaluru to attend the festival. He suffered burns, as did his daughter, who is in the ICU with facial burns.

Many attendees did not know that explosives had been stacked in the storeroom. Usually, small quantities of firecrackers are burst in the vacant space behind the temple as part of the annual festival. But it was different this time. Some temple committee members too claimed that they had no idea how the firecrackers ended up in the storeroom.

Suresh Babu ‘Anjoottan’ from the Vela community, a noted Theyyam artiste who was performing at the temple, said that unlike other festivals, there was no large-scale firework display during Theyyam festivals. Only a few crackers are burst to mark the beginning of Theyyam through an invocation (Thottam). It is believed that after the Thottam, the performer metamorphoses into the deity, dancing to the rhythmic beat of instruments like the chenda and elathalam.

Babu, who has performed Theyyam here for over 45 years, said his father had done the same for 65 years before him. “This tradition, over 350 years old, has never witnessed such an tragedy,” he said.

Soon after the blast, District Collector K. Inbasekar and District Police Chief D. Shilpa arrived at the spot. Victims were transported in private vehicles, ambulances, and police vehicles to nearby hospitals and later transferred to major ones for further treatment.

Inbasekar said permission was required to conduct fireworks at large public gatherings. In this case, the temple committee had obtained permission. Shilpa said the police had registered a case against eight temple committee members and arrested committee president P.K. Chandrasekharan and secretary Bharathan.

The police also arrested P. Rajesh, who was entrusted by the temple committee to handle firecrackers, and Vijayan, for conducting the fireworks. Vijayan had lost his fingers at the same temple 16 years ago when a cracker exploded in his hands. The temple committee had barred him from bursting crackers at its festival ever since.

But the police said Vijayan was bursting crackers near the storeroom on the day. Both Vijayan and Rajesh have been booked under various sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita and the Explosive Substances Act. Chandrasekharan, Bharatan, and Rajesh were granted bail on Friday.

The district police chief said a large quantity of firecrackers had been kept in the storeroom. Preliminary investigations suggested that sparks from fireworks outside the storeroom caused the explosion. Shilpa said the firecrackers, worth ₹30,000, included Chinese-made and locally manufactured ones. However, questions are being asked as to why the fireworks display was arranged so close to the storeroom. The presence of Vijayan at the event was also questioned by some local people. 

A nine-member special investigation team, led by Kanhangad Deputy Superintendent of Police Babu Peringeth, has been constituted to investigate the incident. The team has begun to record the statements of blast victims. Besides, the forensic and bomb teams have collected samples from the spot.

The tragedy has led to tensions between political parties. The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) publicly questioned the police and the district administration on why they failed to prevent the tragedy. They have been sparring with the CPI(M) over accountability.

BJP State secretary K. Sreekanth said that only low-intensity Chinese firecrackers had been stored, and accused the district administration of shifting the blame to temple officials. “If high-intensity explosives had been involved, the damage would have been catastrophic,” he said. He also questioned the arrests.

Meanwhile, CPI(M) workers urged people to avoid a blame game, as unified relief efforts instead of ‘partisan disputes’ were the need of the hour. CPI(M) leader E.P. Jayarajan said the fault was with the festival organisers. Everyone should have taken precautionary measures and engaging in a blame game was totally inappropriate, he said. 

Neeleswaram Inspector of Police Nibin Joy said the temple authorities had only intimated the police about the festival, and not about the firecrackers. The committee should have sought permission to use firecrackers. Police personnel had been deployed at the temple for crowd control and to ensure law and order, he said.

E. Shajeer, councillor at Neeleswaram municipality, alleged that Rajesh, one of the two who burst the crackers, was aligned with the BJP and that the arrest had not gone well with the party. However, the temple committee, comprising people from all walks of life, was not controlled by a single political party, he said.

The incident once again highlighted the lack of medical facilities and specialist hospitals in Kasaragod district. Though the victims were initially treated at nearby hospitals, many had to be referred to hospitals in neighbouring districts or in Mangaluru in Karnataka.

Going by official records, of the 102 admitted, around 70 were referred to hospitals in Kannur, Kozhikode, and Mangaluru. P.C. Rajan, who lives near the temple, said his brother and sister, who suffered severe burns, were transferred to a private hospital in Kannur due to limited facilities at the Kanhangad district hospital.

Rajan says his siblings, recuperating in Kannur, might need plastic surgery. “It would have been a great relief had Kasaragod had hospitals with such facilities,” he said.

While the government has announced its decision to cover all medical expenses of the victims, some hospitals were accused of billing the patients. The Collector said all the 13 hospitals treating the victims had been assured that all expenses would be borne by the government. “The District Medical Officers have been coordinating with hospitals, including those in Dakshina Kannada. A team will visit these hospitals to ensure compliance,” he said.

But it looks like the road to recovery is long for many.

Published - November 02, 2024 01:01 am IST