The recent reports from the Sri Lanka terror blast incident suggest that seven Janata Dal (Secular) party workers who went to Colombo for a tour on April 20, have not got in tough with their family members after since the blast from yesterday. The Indian High Commission in Sri Lanka have confirmed the death of two of the seven JDS workers while five are still untraceable.
The seven who have gone missing, were staying at Shangri-La Hotel in Colombo, where a bomb went off yesterday. The two deceased have been identified as KG Hanumantharayappa and M Rangappa. The five missing Shivanna, Puttaraju, Muniyappa, Lakshmi Narayana, and Maregowda.
Most of these leaders hail from Chikkaballapur district in the Indian state of Karnataka. They had left for vacation after campaigning for Congress leader Veerappa Moily, who is contesting from the Chikkaballapura Lok Sabha constituency in the ongoing Lok Sabha Elections.
Also read: Sri Lanka Easter bombing toll touches 290
Reacting upon the news, Karnataka Chief Minister HD Kumarswamy has expressed his shock.
“I’m shocked to hear that a 7-member team of JD(S) workers from Karnataka, who were touring Colombo (Sri Lanka), has gone missing after bomb blasts. 2 of them are feared killed. I’m in constant touch with Indian High Commission on reports of those missing,” Kumarswamy said.
“I’m deeply shocked at the loss of our JD(S) party workers, whom I know personally. We stand with their families in this hour of grief.” he added.
Around 500 people were injured while 290 lives were lost in the blasts, including suicide attacks, which struck three churches and luxury hotels in Sri Lanka on Easter Sunday. The incident is one of the deadliest attacks in the country’s history. No group has claimed responsibility for Sunday’s attacks.
The blasts targeted St Anthony’s Church in Colombo, St Sebastian’s Church in the western coastal town of Negombo and another church in the eastern town of Batticaloa around 8:45 AM (local time) as the Easter Sunday mass were in progress. Three explosions were reported from the five-star hotels — the Shangri-La, the Cinnamon Grand and the Kingsbury.
