By Tasneem Bandukwala
Many schools in Ahmedabad received concerning emails about bomb threats on Wednesday. This led to city-wide panic and security measures. However, police confirmed that the threats were not serious as there were no suspicious objects found.
“We will take revenge” is what the emails sent to around 10 schools in the Gujarat district read.
Harshad Patel, Deputy Commissioner of Police for Zone 1, said that roughly ten schools in Ahmedabad received threat emails, following which multiple police teams were sent to conduct thorough checks on the premises. The searches did not expose any suspicious items. As a preventive measure, authorities declared a holiday for the afternoon session at the affected schools.
Investigators have not revealed the exact wording of the threat emails, due to the ongoing inquiry. Sources said the messages mentioned that explosions would take place at 1:11 pm.
The schools targeted by the emails allegedly included Zydus School of Excellence, Maharaja Agrasen Vidhyalaya, Udgam School for Children, and Zebar School for Children, some sources said.
Similar emails were reported from different parts of the country in recent days, including Delhi and Punjab. This indicates that the Ahmedabad school threats are not an isolated incident but could be part of a broader pattern.
A minimum of eleven private schools in Jalandhar, Punjab, received bomb threat emails on December 15, resulting in prompt evacuation. Amritsar schools also received similar emails earlier on December 12; these were later shown to be frauds. On December 10, such messages were sent to schools in Delhi. Authorities are unable to verify whether these incidents are related, but a school in Gurugram also received a bomb threat.