‘Terror group CEO’ threatens RBI helpline with bomb attack

A bomb threat was made to the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) helpline on Nov 16, with the caller claiming to be the “CEO of Lashkar-e-Taiba.”

The caller, identifying himself as the "CEO" of the terrorist group, warned of a bomb at the central bank around 11 am. He even sang a song before making the threat, sources were quoted as saying.

Mumbai Police has filed a case and is tracking the caller, as the bomb threat comes amid a rise in hoax calls to airlines in recent months, grounding hundreds of flights and raising concerns for aviators and security agencies, police officials were quoted as saying.

Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT), the Pakistan based terror outfit was behind the 2008 Mumbai attacks, one of the most devastating terror incidents in India.

In a latest such incident, an IndiGo flight from Nagpur to Kolkata made an emergency landing in Raipur on Nov 14 after a bomb threat, which was later found to be fake.

The union government has expressed serious concern over the issue, warning social media platforms to act against the spread of such misinformation or risk losing the exemptions they currently enjoy in India.

The information technology ministry issued an advisory recently saying that bomb hoaxes not only disturb citizens but also undermine the country's economic security.

One such hoax last month was revealed to be a scheme by a school dropout in Chhattisgarh, who planned to frame his friend.

Mumbai's Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport received a bomb threat on Nov 13 afternoon from an anonymous caller, who claimed a passenger was carrying explosives.

The bomb threat was reported to the CISF control room at Terminal 1 (domestic) around 3 pm that day, police said.

The caller reportedly did not provide any flight details and abruptly ended the call. Authorities are also looking into the caller's identity and conducting a thorough investigation, officials were quoted as saying.

As a precaution, security measures have been heightened at the airport, with police verifying passenger details to ensure safety, they added.