Students were evacuated and panic gripped parents after around 48 schools in Bengaluru received bomb threat emails, which the city police called hoax and launched an investigation to track down the accused and trace the origin of the emails.
According to private school management officials, the email landed in the school’s official email at 6:30 am while some schools received the email in two parts, with the second one around 7 am.
The email ID identified itself as “Kharijites”. “There are explosive devices on the school grounds. On November 26 martyrs in the way of Allah killed hundreds of idolaters It is truly powerful to hold a knife over tens of millions of thin gulps of kafirs He falls and falls Hundreds of Mujahideen flooded the war area in anticipation of martyrdom in the way of Allah You are the enemies of Allah we will kill you and your children,” the mail read.
“You have a choice to become our slaves or to accept the true religion of Allah Temples Your idols From Buddha to infinity They will fly apart from our explosions Bismillah we will spread the true religion of Allah to the whole of India And we sent predators at you Already flying to immerse yourself in the Taj Bismillah tomorrow it will become the capitol and thousands of Zionists all over the world dead Convert to Islam or die under the weight of the sword of Islam When you meet with non-believers, you chop off their heads Chop off their heads and chop off all their fingers Fight all the polytheists just as they fight all of you. Allahu Akbar,” the threat mail also said.
The emails were sent from various addresses by masking the IP of the origin, police sources said.
Police responded to multiple calls from schools by deploying anti-sabotage and bomb detection squads. The students of all the 48 schools were sent home. Even some schools in the central business district, which did not receive the threat, allowed parents to take their wards home.
Bengaluru city Police Commissioner B Dayananda said, “The bomb detection squad was dispatched to all the 48 schools where threat was reported. After thorough inspection it was found that the threat was a hoax and is a handiwork of miscreants to create tension in society. All the schools where the threat was reported have registered a complaint in different police divisions. We have initiated an investigation and are also taking into account a similar incident that was reported in April last year in Bengaluru and in different countries including Malaysia, Trinidad and Germany, a month ago.”
Abinav Mittal, a father, was in office when his daughter’s school Global Indian International School in Gunjur notified him about a ‘bomb threat’ and were allowing students to go home. “My wife was working from home. Around 10:45, we received a message from the school officials saying that students will be allowed to go home because of a threat call. We were anxious and tense until our daughter reached home. My daughter was composed as she did not know why they were sent home. The students were sent home in their school buses,” said Mittal.
Arun Kumar, coordinator of New Cambridge School in Electronics City with 1,400 students faced a challenge handling anxious parents as well as ensuring there is no panic. “School officials saw the email only by 8:45 am. We did not inform the parents immediately as it could trigger panic. Parents gathered at the school gate in large numbers. They were emotional. A single parent began weeping, despite being told it was a hoax call.” said Kumar.
Sijo Sebastian, joint secretary of Voice of Parents Association, said, “This bomb scare is just exhausting the law enforcement resources and the students’ precious time unnecessarily. When similar incidents were reported earlier, the investigation was not taken to its logical conclusion. Law enforcement agencies should take stringent action to prevent such threats.”
On April 8, 2022, around 16 schools in Bengaluru received hoax bomb threat emails between 11 am and 2.30 pm. In 2022, the police also filed a case under cyber terrorism. Investigation revealed that a minor from Tamil Nadu was behind the email IDs used for the threats. It emerged during probe that the same app was used to send the messages and a minor, who created a programme to mask the IP addresses to send the group emails, was investigated.
© The Indian Express Pvt Ltd
First published on: 01-12-2023 at 10:38 IST
