Grenade detonator blows up during court demonstration in Karachi

Policeman, court official injured while judge was thrown off his chair

KARACHI: The detonator of a hand grenade exploded during a demonstration requested by a judge in an anti-terror court in Karachi on Monday, injuring two people and throwing the judge off his chair.

The dramatic incident, which left a policeman and a court assistant injured, occurred during the trial of a man accused of being an extortionist and a gangster who had carried out several grenade attacks. Police had also claimed to have recovered a stash of grenades when they arrested him.



“Police constable Liaquat was presenting the detonator of the hand grenade which had been recovered from the suspect before the ATC-III judge as evidence,”said a court staffer who witnessed the incident.

When the judge asked Liaquat to describe how a grenade works, the constable held up its components.

“He [Liaquat] pulled the pin out of the detonator to show the judge how it works but it [detonator] exploded.”

The small blast sent shrapnel flying in the room. Constable Liaquat’s hand was badly wounded while the court’s stenographer, Shoaib, suffered from a shrapnel-wound to his head.

The judge was thrown off his chair but did not suffer any injuries despite his close proximity to the device.



Another court official, whose office is located on the ground floor, below the court, said that around 1pm he heard glass shattering. “There is a huge glass door at the entrance of the building. At first, I thought it has been smashed. So I went out to check but saw there was a rush on the first floor.”

Describing the explosion as an accident, DIG South Dr Jamil Ahmed confirmed the incident. He added that the part which exploded was the grenade’s detonator which was thought to have been defused.



Published in The Express Tribune, April 12^th,  2016.