Chennai

The 1998 Coimbatore serial bomb blasts were a “dark and painful” chapter in India’s history that left deep and lasting scars on countless families, Vice President C P Radhakrishnan said on Saturday.

Paying his “heartfelt” homage to the innocent lives lost in the blasts on February 14, 1998, Radhakrishnan said the tragedy continued to haunt the nation’s collective memory. “It was a dark and painful chapter in our nation’s history,” he said.

Recalling the events of that day, the Vice President noted that a series of powerful explosions rocked the city when senior BJP leader L K Advani was visiting Coimbatore, plunging the city into fear, grief and uncertainty. “The atmosphere that prevailed then remains deeply etched in my memory,” he said.

Radhakrishnan, who hails from Coimbatore, said he himself had a narrow escape in one of the blasts. “Those dreadful moments, when we struggled to rescue the injured and rushed the critically wounded to hospitals, remain among the most painful periods of my life,” he said in a post on the social media platform X.

I pay my heartfelt homage to the innocent lives lost in the tragic Coimbatore serial bomb blasts of 14 February 1998, a dark and painful chapter in our nation’s history.

On that fateful day, when Shri L. K. Advani ji was visiting the city, a series of horrific explosions shook…

— Vice-President of India (@VPIndia) February 14, 2026

Expressing solidarity with the bereaved families, the Vice President said their loss could never be replaced. He called upon citizens to reaffirm their collective resolve to stand united against terrorism and to uphold peace, harmony and national integrity. His message was shared in both English and Tamil.

Union Minister of State for Information and Broadcasting L Murugan also paid homage to the victims, describing the blasts as the “black day” of Coimbatore. He said the attacks targeted 11 locations with the intention of disrupting a public meeting attended by Advani, resulting in the killing of innocent civilians. Noting that Saturday marked the 28th anniversary of the incident, Murugan extended condolences to the families of the deceased and expressed sympathy for the survivors in a post on X.

BJP Tamil Nadu president Nainar Nagenthran said the pain and scars of the horrific incident had not faded even after 28 years. He urged people to resolve that such atrocities, driven by religious hatred, should never be repeated in a country that values unity and brotherhood.

Former BJP state president K Annamalai said the coordinated blasts during the then Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam regime claimed 58 lives and injured more than 200 people, leaving what he described as an “unhealed scar” in public memory. He accused the DMK of allegedly betraying the victims by releasing convicts before completion of their sentences.

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Annamalai also referred to the car blast near the Kottai Eswaran Temple area of Ukkadam on Diwali eve in October 2022, which claimed one life, alleging that it was initially described as a cylinder blast. The case was later transferred to the National Investigation Agency for investigation.