KARACHI - A woman was killed and her daughter-in-law wounded in a low-intensity explosion in Ferozeabad area of Karachi city on Wednesday.
Initially it was being believed that two female suicide bombers had tried to target an imambargah located on Khalid Bin Waleed Road. But later investigations suggested unidentified culprits had placed a bag containing a hand grenade along the roadside to scare any vehicle dealership for extortion and the two ladies, who used to work as housemaids, had picked it up thinking there was a toy inside.
“We are not terrorists,” said Amir, husband of Azra, who was fatally wounded in the explosion. The victim, 45-year-old Nasreen, was identified as Amir’s mother.
According to witnesses, the powerful explosion rocked Khalid Bin Waleed Road and its surrounding areas at around 11 in the morning.
Immediately after the incident, extra contingents of rangers and police personnel appeared at the site and cordoned off the area. The dead and the wounded were shifted to Jinnah Postgraduate Medical Centre for autopsy and medical treatment.
On receiving information, the victim’s family members and relatives reached the hospital. “We belong to a poor family. But my mother and wife have been declared suicide bombers which was not fair,” said Amir a scrap cart vendor and a resident of Lines Area. He said they hailed from Multan and belonged to the Siraiki family, adding that in Karachi his wife and mother used to work as housemaids somewhere in PECHS Society.
In her statement, the injured woman said they spotted a shopping bag along the roadside and thinking that there was a toy inside they picked it up but it went off in their hands.
A spokesperson for Sindh Police clarified it was not an attack and that both the victim and the injured belonged to a poor family. They used to work as housemaids to eke out a living.
Officials suspected unidentified culprits might have placed the bag containing a hand grenade to scare any vehicle dealership for extortion. Investigations are in progress.