BENGALURU: At least four out of seven members belonging to the Janata Dal (Secular) party in Karnataka, have been confirmed dead in the bomb blasts that rocked the island nation of Sri Lanka on Sunday.
“I am deeply pained at the loss of our people in the #colombo attacks. Out of the seven missing after the #TerrorAttack, four have been declared dead," Karnataka chief minister H.D.Kumaraswamy wrote on Twitter on Monday.
Lakshmana Gowda Ramesh, K.M. Lakshminarayan, M.Rangappa and K.G.Hanumantharayappa, all residents of Bengaluru have been confirmed dead according to Kumaraswamy.
The whereabouts of three others, H.Shivu Kumar,A.Maregowda and H.Puttaraju is still not known. Though it was suspected that the seven member team were on official tour, officials from the chief minister’s office clarified that it was personal tour.
“The Chief Secretary has spoken to High Commissioner of India in Sri Lanka. One group from Karnataka is returning from Kandy. They will help to identify the fifth body. The @IndiainSL will provide information on the other two missing persons as soon as it is received, the CS said," Kumaraswamy said in his latest post on Twitter.
A string of eight blasts, including suicide attacks had devastated Sri Lanka on Easter Sunday, ripping through churches and luxury hotels, killing hundreds.
Over 290 people are believed to have died and another 500 injured, The Guardian quoted cabinet spokesperson Rajitha Senaratne as saying.
“All victims were #JDS workers from Karnataka and were on a tour to #SriLanka. I am deeply pained at the loss of their lives in the heinous attack. They were also committed workers of our party and their death has brought immense sorrow to us," Kumaraswamy, who has been busy with the Lok Sabha elections in Karnataka wrote.
