Explosion at popular cafe in India injures five

Rameshwaram Cafe’s owner denies preliminary reports of cylinder cafe and said bomb squad was at the spot

Rameshwaram Cafe, a prominent restaurant serving south Indian cuisine of dosas and idli, opened in India’s Silicon Valley city Bengaluru in 2021 (Instagram: Rameshwaram Cafe)

At least five people were injured after a minor explosion shook up a famous cafe in the southern India city of Bengaluru on Monday, police officials said.

The explosion took place at the Rameshwaram Cafe in Bengaluru’s Brookfield neighbourhood in Whitefield around 1.30pm local time during lunch hour rush.

Authorities have rushed police vans, firefighters, a forensic team and a bomb squad at the spot to carry out rescue operations and ascertain the cause of explosion, reported The Indian Express.

The injured people include one woman, officials said, adding that three staff workers are also hurt. All injured people have been hospitalised, the report added.

Police officials have cordoned off the area around the popular joint to remove inflammable material from the kitchen.

Initial reports suggested that the explosion was caused by a cooking gas cylinder that burst, however, the Rameshwaram Cafe’s owner denied the preliminary reports.

“We have given access of all our CCTV cameras to the police. The bomb squad is also in the restaurant to identify the cause. We are cooperating with the law enforcement agencies,” Divya Raghavendra Rao, the owner of the cafe told The Indian Express.

Visuals from the spot of the blast showed panicked customers gathered at the cafe as officials sealed off the area. The cafe is a common place to grab lunch by office goers in the western part of the city which houses several global information technology companies like IBM and Accenture.

The Karnataka state home minister Dr G Parameshwara spoke to senior police officials in the area and took stock of the situation.

Rameshwaram Cafe, a prominent restaurant serving south Indian cuisine of dosas and idli, opened in India’s Silicon Valley city Bengaluru in 2021 and quickly rose to popularity on social media.

The cafe’s three branches across the city are known to generate a revenue of Rs 45 million every month (£4m).