India Bomb Blast Suspect Says He Targeted Jehovah's Witnesses Gathering Because Their 'Beliefs Were Wrong'

A man has been detained in India for allegedly setting off explosives at a Jehovah's Witnesses gathering, which killed at least three people and left around 50 others wounded Sunday.

The self-proclaimed former member of the Jehovah's Witnesses community, identified as Dominic Martin, surrendered before police claiming responsibility for the blasts.

A series of explosions occurred in the town of Kalamassery in the southern Indian state of Kerala on Sunday morning, which was the last day of a three-day event of the Jehovah's Witnesses — a sect founded in the U.S. that is today known across the globe for its door-to-door evangelism.

Around 2,500 people had gathered for a prayer session when three separate blasts ripped through the hall. Three people, including a 12-year-old girl, died in the incident.

Hours after the blasts, Martin surrendered at a police station located about 40 miles away from the prayer hall.

Martin had confessed to the crime in a Facebook Live video before surrendering to the police. The man said he was a former member of the Jehovah's Witnesses and that he orchestrated the blasts because he felt the sect's beliefs were wrong.

India reportedly has about 60,000 Jehovah's Witnesses followers. Although Jehovah's Witnesses identify as Christians, they reject the Christian doctrine of the Trinity and believe traditional churches have deviated from the true teachings of the Bible.

Martin said he didn't agree with their teachings and that their ideas were "poisoning young minds."

"I take complete responsibility for that. It was me who conducted the blast there," he said in the six-minute video.

"Six years ago, I realized that this organization was on the wrong path, and their teachings were anti-national. I asked them to correct it several times. However, they were never ready to do that," Martin said.

"Nothing wrong with having a belief. But what they teach is that everyone in this world will perish, and they will continue to live. What should we do about a group that wishes for the end of 850 crore (8.5 billion) people? I could not find a way. I decided to respond to this wrong ideology since I am totally aware of it," he added. "Living in this country, they demean the entire people here by calling them prostitutes and doomed. They ask their men not to join hands with others, and don't eat food with them. I realized this was a wrong ideology."

Police are still verifying Martin's claims and have not confirmed whether he is the mastermind behind the explosions.

Some local reports said Martin was booked by the police under India's Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA).