KARACHI, March 1: A suspected explosives handler died when the substance he was carrying went off in an isolated area along the National Highway on Tuesday.

Police said the blast was heard near MDA flats in Shah Latif Town that caused panic among people in the neighborhood. Police found the head of the alleged explosives handler and parts of his body which they said would help to determine the nature of the blast.

“The blast took place in bushes behind the MDA flats, which is still an unoccupied project,” said Capital City Police Officer (CCPO) Fayyaz Leghari.

“There is no installation around. Neither there is any potential location that could have been seen as a target of the bomb attack. Initially it seems that the person who died could have been the handler of the substance that exploded incidentally.”

He, however, said that railway tracks in the area could have been the target.

The CCPO said investigators, including bomb disposal personnel, were examining the site to determine the make and properties of the explosives.

“We have seen a couple of attacks on railways in Karachi in recent days. All possibilities will be taken into account during investigation,” Mr Leghari said.