A massive explosion inside a police station in Indian-administered Kashmir has left at least nine people dead and 32 injured, officials confirmed on Saturday, once again drawing attention to the fragile and volatile situation created by New Delhi’s heavy-handed security policies in the disputed region.

The blast occurred late Friday in the Nowgam area of Srinagar as police and forensic teams were examining a cache of explosives previously seized during operations. Nalin Prabhat, the region’s police director-general, quickly labeled the incident an “accident,” denying any foul play despite the scale of the destruction and the presence of volatile explosive materials inside a populated area.

Among the dead were six police and forensic officers, two civil administrators, and one civilian. Several of the injured remain in critical condition.

The explosion ripped through the entire police station, torching multiple vehicles and triggering smaller secondary blasts that hampered rescue efforts, according to the Press Trust of India.

The tragedy unfolded just days after a car blast near New Delhi’s Red Fort killed at least eight people, further exposing the growing instability within India itself.

For decades, India has attempted to blame Pakistan for the Kashmiri resistance, framing it as “Pakistan-sponsored terrorism.” Islamabad has consistently rejected these accusations, emphasizing that the uprising in Indian-occupied Kashmir is an indigenous struggle born out of sustained oppression, political disenfranchisement, and severe human rights violations by Indian forces.

Millions of Kashmiris have long demanded the right to self-determination as guaranteed under UN resolutions — a right Pakistan has repeatedly affirmed on diplomatic, moral, and political grounds.

The latest blast has once again highlighted the dangers created by the Indian security establishment’s militarized policies and the mishandling of sensitive explosive materials inside civilian zones. It also underscores the growing unrest in a region where New Delhi’s approach continues to exacerbate tensions rather than resolve the long-standing dispute. (ILKHA)