On 20th January, Hapur police in Uttar Pradesh recovered a huge stock of explosive material, including around 200 kilograms of gun cotton powder and nearly 2,000 ready-made cylindrical candles, from a house in Fatehpur village under the Babugarh police station limits. According to the police, the house was being used as an illegal firecracker-making unit. Several machines and tools used to manufacture firecrackers were also recovered.
थाना बाबूगढ़ क्षेत्रान्तर्गत ग्राम फतेहपुर के एक मकान में अवैध विस्फोटक पदार्थ बरामद होने की घटना के संबंध में क्षेत्राधिकारी नगर की बाइट…! pic.twitter.com/h2O8QY4XyN
— HAPUR POLICE (@hapurpolice) January 19, 2026
Superintendent of Police Varun Mishra said one person, Nadeem, son of Rafiq and a resident of Ghaziabad, has been arrested in connection with the case. He said police teams are continuing raids to trace others who were involved in the activity. Action has been initiated under laws related to explosives and public safety.
#WATCH | Hapur, UP: DSP Varun Mishra says, "Today, during a search of a house in Fatehpur village, under Babugarh police station, police recovered approximately 200 kg of gun cotton powder, about 2,000 candles made from explosive materials… and other equipment used for making… pic.twitter.com/Gz9uUdDVgY
— ANI (@ANI) January 19, 2026
The case was registered at Babugarh police station under Section 288 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) and Sections 5 and 9B of the Explosives Act, 1884. As per the FIR accessed by OpIndia, the place of occurrence is Fatehpur Kuchesar Chaupla, about seven kilometres east of the police station. All the seized material was taken to the police station for further legal proceedings.
Police officials said the operation began a day earlier, on 19th January, during routine patrolling. Sub-Inspector Omkar Gangwar, along with SI Gaurav Kumar, SI Ramdhan Singh and Constable Ashish Sharma, was checking tenant details in the Fatehpur Kuchesar Chaupla area when they received information from a confidential informant about suspicious work going on inside a house.
When the police reached the house, which belongs to Rahul, the son of Rajkumar, the door was opened by Nadeem. A search inside revealed large cartons filled with firecracker shells, packing material and other items used in making crackers.
During questioning, Nadeem told the police that he had rented the house just a week earlier for ₹6,000 per month. He said he was making “Anar” firecrackers along with his associates, Nazim, Shahrukh, and Zubair, and that the work was being carried out without a licence.
The candles recovered from the spot were cylindrical in shape, wrapped in red and silver foil, with electronic wires attached at the bottom. Police also seized 27 bundles of empty plastic shells, two pressure machines, two hammers, an electronic weighing scale, and a large amount of packing material, including paper, Fevicol, tubs and white cement or POP.
Police said the investigation is underway and efforts are being made to arrest the remaining individuals named in the case.
