NIA court sentences main accused in Mangaluru cooker blast case to 10 years of RI

ASpecial margaret court for the subject investigating government agency in Bengaluru on mon sentenced Mohammed Shariq, the main accused in the 2022 Mangaluru cooker bomb blast case, to 10 years of rigorous imprisonment.The incident took place on November 19, 2022, when an improvised explosive device (IED) hidden inside a pressure cooker detonated inside an autorickshaw near Kankanady in Mangaluru. No casualties occurred, although Shariq himself suffered serious injuries. He was arrested upon his discharge from the hospital.Investigators said that the explosion occurred accidentally due to a faulty timer, which prevented a larger incident. The National Investigation Agency described the act as part of a conspiracy to threaten national security.The sentence was imposed under multiple provisions of the Indian Penal Code, including Sections 121A, 122 and 326, along with charges under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act. The court delivered its order after Shariq appeared via video conferencing and requested leniency, stating that he has a daughter and no earning member in his family. The court considered this submission while deciding the sentence.In March, the court accepted Shariq’s guilty plea. He had initially pleaded not guilty when charges were framed in April 2024, but later reversed his position in December 2025 by filing an application under Section 229 of the Code of Criminal Procedure. The court allowed the application on March 26 and scheduled a fresh hearing to record the plea after restating the charges.Investigators said Shariq, who is from Shivamogga district, was linked to a network described as an Islamic State-inspired module operating in parts of Karnataka. Officials said he had been wanted in connection with a September 2022 case involving alleged testing of IEDs.Authorities have also connected the module to earlier incidents. Shariq had previously been arrested in 2020 in a case involving anti-national graffiti in Mangaluru and was later released on bail.Police inquiries into related cases indicated that members of the group had conducted experimental blasts along the banks of the Tunga river and possessed materials used to assemble improvised explosive devices. Officials said seized items and digital evidence suggested ideological alignment with the Islamic State, though earlier investigations noted no confirmed direct operational link with the banned organisation.The module has also been named in connection with the March 1, 2024 explosion at the Rameshwaram Cafe in Bengaluru, where investigators believe a similar device was used.