Kozhikode: The district administration on May 8 took control of a place of worship of a particular community in the Marad beach area, the scene of the sudden attack on May 2 that claimed nine lives, as a "precautionary security" measure.

According to police, authorities began the process of taking charge of the place of worship in the morning and the entire procedure was likely to be completed during the day. "The action is as part of the security measures initiated by the district administration," they said.

However, district collector T O Suraj, who is overseeing the operations, would seek the opinion of the advocate general regarding matters like continuance of religious activities at the place of worship, they said.

Meanwhile, two swords and a gelatine bomb were recovered from a house on May 8 in continuing search operations by police in the area, the sources said, adding excavation was also being carried out at some places to find out if more arms and weapon were hidden or buried in the area.

The seizure was made from a coconut farm located adjacent to the premises, they said, adding metal detectors and police dog squads were also pressed into service in the combing operations.

A large cache of arms had so far been recovered from the area, including a place of worship, since the attack.

PTI