More than 100 flights operated by various Indian airlines received bomb threats on Tuesday. In 16 days, over 510 domestic and international flights have received threats that later turned out to be hoaxes. The threats were issued mostly through social media. Meanwhile, the Nagpur police arrested a 35-year-old man from Maharashtra's Gondia, who was allegedly behind the spate of hoax bomb threats that triggered panic, caused flight delays, and led to increased security at airports and other establishments.
Air India received threats for around 36 flights and IndiGo for about 35 flights. Vistara received the threats for 32 flights. "A number of Air India flights were subject to security threats received on social media on 29 October 2024. "Following the laid down protocols, relevant authorities were immediately alerted, and all security procedures strictly adhered to, as per guidance from the regulatory authorities," an airline spokesperson said in a statement. As many as 14 FIRs in October in connection with the bomb threats to airlines.
In a related development, designated terrorist Gurpatwant Singh Pannun has also issued a threat specifically named several Air India flights in his recent video message, focusing on routes between New Delhi and Toronto (AI 187, AI 189), Vancouver (AI 185), London (AI 111, AI 161), Frankfurt (AI 121), Sydney (AI 302), and Melbourne (AI 308). Additional threats target Mumbai-London routes (AI 129, AI 131).
Meanwhile, the Nagpur police Special Branch has identified him as Jagdish Uikey, an author of a book on terrorism, who had been arrested in 2021 in a separate case. Uikey was identified after the hoax emails were traced back to him. So far three persons have been arrested in the hoax bomb threats probe. One was arrested from Indira Gandhi International Airport, and the second arrest was made from Chhattisgarh.
The investigation, led by Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCP) Shweta Khedkar uncovered detailed information linking Uikey to the emails. According to Nagpur police, Uikey sent emails to various government bodies, including the Prime Minister's Office (PMO), Railway Minister, Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde and his deputy, airline offices, the Director General of Police (DGP) and the Railway Protection Force (RPF).
On Monday, the Nagpur police stepped up security outside Deputy Chief Minister and Home Minister Devendra Fadnavis's residence in the city after Uikey sent an email threatening to protest unless given a chance to present his information on the secret terror code he claimed to have deciphered. He also requested a meeting with Prime Minister Narendra Modi to discuss his knowledge of terror threats, he added. Uikey's email sent on October 21 to Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw, and also forwarded to the DGP and RPF, led to security measures at railway stations, the official said.
Meanwhile, in the wake of a significant rise in airline threat calls recently, the National Investigation Agency (NIA) has intensified its security efforts across the nation. To address these growing threats, the NIA's cyber wing has launched a comprehensive analysis of these foreign threat calls. This investigation is focused on discerning the motives behind these calls and assessing their authenticity.
Against the backdrop of a spate of hoax bomb threats to airlines, the IT Ministry has asked social media platforms to observe due diligence obligations and promptly remove or disable access to misinformation within the strict timelines prescribed under IT rules. Also, the civil aviation ministry is looking to take legislative actions to tackle the menace of the hoax bomb threats to airlines. On Sunday, Civil Aviation Minister K Rammohan Naidu said the Centre is mulling steps to ban perpetrators, who resort to hoax bomb threats, from flying.
