Suspect detained in an explosion that killed 3 at Jehovah’s Witness occasion in India

NEW DELHI — A former Jehovah’s Witness has been detained on suspicion of setting off an explosive machine that killed three individuals and wounded 50 others at a denomination gathering in southern India, authorities stated Monday.

Lots of of Witnesses had been at a neighborhood prayer session Sunday on the Zamra Worldwide Conference Heart within the city of Kalamassery in Kerala state when the explosion occurred. An improvised explosive machine positioned inside a tiffin field was believed accountable, the state’s prime police officer, Sheik Darvesh Saheb, stated.

The suspect was recognized by police as Dominic Martin, a former member of the Jehovah’s Witnesses who posted a video on Facebook claiming duty for the blast earlier than surrendering to the police. Martin, a neighborhood, stated within the video he determined to hold out the blast as a result of he feels the Jehovah’s Witness theology is mistaken.

“They train that every one individuals of the world would perish and solely they are going to dwell. What ought to we do with individuals who lengthy for the wreck of the whole individuals on the planet. I couldn’t discover a answer. I took the choice realizing that this concept is harmful to the nation,” Martin stated within the video.

Police stated they had been nonetheless making an attempt to confirm Martin’s claims of duty for the blast.

Jehovah’s Witnesses establish as Christians however are guided by distinctive beliefs and practices. They’re recognized for his or her door-to-door proselytism.

India, with a inhabitants of greater than 1.4 billion individuals, has about 60,000 Jehovah’s Witnesses followers, in response to its adherents.