'It Exploded in His Mouth': Indian Man, 35, Dies After Eating Crude Bomb Disguised as Sweet Dessert

Rajendra Barautiya, 35, died on Tuesday in Madhya Pradesh's Dindori district after a crude bomb disguised as a sweet dessert exploded in his mouth, police stated.

Barautiya had finished dinner with his family and was sitting beside a bonfire outside his home when a neighbour handed him what appeared to be a rasgulla, according to India Today. The popular sweet is made from cottage cheese.

What appeared to be a traditional dessert was instead a ball of cheese dough filled with gunpowder. Police stated that the explosive detonated when Barautiya put it in his mouth. He suffered severe injuries and was taken to hospital, where he was pronounced dead, according to the coverage.

A Crude Bomb Presented as a Sweet

Police officer Rekha Singh described the fatal explosion in comments to AFP. Her statement identified the device as a type some people in the area employ to kill wild boars.

'The bomb, used by some tribal people in the area to kill wild boars, was offered to this man,' Singh told AFP. 'It exploded in his mouth.'

The device's resemblance to a rasgulla forms part of the description of how it was offered to Barautiya. The cheese dough concealed gunpowder, rather than forming an ordinary dessert. The explosive was described as a method employed by villagers against wild boars in Dindori district.

That description does not establish why this particular device was handed to Barautiya. Police were examining both how it had been obtained and the reason it was offered to him.

Questions Surround the Crude Bomb's Origin

A homicide case against the neighbour, identified as Ram Bhagat Barotiya, and another man was pending, according to the coverage. Officials were investigating how the neighbour had obtained the crude bomb and why he offered it to Barautiya.

The existence of the pending case does not resolve the question of intent. Singh explicitly left open whether Barautiya's death followed an attempt to kill him or a malicious prank.

The sequence described by India Today places the encounter after a family meal, with Barautiya sitting outdoors beside the bonfire. It identifies the neighbour as the person who handed him the apparent sweet. It does not, by itself, establish that the neighbour intended the fatal outcome.

Barautiya's injuries and subsequent death were described separately from the investigation into motive. Police described the explosion, while Singh's comments left the purpose behind offering the device unresolved.

Police Examine Intent Behind the Crude Bomb

Singh outlined the uncertainty when discussing the investigation. 'We do not know whether the intention was to kill him or whether it was a malicious prank. That will be determined during the investigation,' Singh stated.

Her comments describe two possibilities under examination, rather than a conclusion about either. Singh's statement did not identify either possibility as the established explanation for the explosion. Her comments placed the question of intent within the investigation into Barautiya's death.

Officials were also investigating how the crude bomb had been obtained. Alongside that inquiry, the question Singh identified remained why an explosive device employed against wild boars had been offered to Barautiya as something to eat.