New Delhi: Panic gripped several parts of the capital on Wednesday after around 20 colleges, including Delhi University institutions and Jesus and Mary
College in Chanakyapuri, reported receiving bomb threat emails. The threats, however, were later declared a hoax after extensive searches revealed nothing suspicious, Delhi Police officials confirmed.
First Threats This Week
“This is the first time this week that such email threats have been reported. The messages, suspected to have been sent through a VPN (Virtual Private Network), carried content like ‘high power explosives’ had been planted and ‘students deserve freedom’,” a police source said.Local police received calls regarding the threats on Wednesday afternoon from Jesus and Mary College, Aryabhatta College and Motilal Nehru College, all located in Delhi University’s South Campus area. Teams from the Bomb Detection Team (BDT), the Bomb Disposal Squad (BDS), and other agencies immediately carried out checks. Officials confirmed that no explosives or suspicious items were found.
Also Read: School in Dwarka Receives Bomb Threat Email; 4th Incident This Week
Pattern of Threats in the Capital
The city has seen a spate of similar incidents over the past year. Just last week, more than 100 schools across Delhi received bomb threats over email within a span of five days. Police investigations revealed that these messages were sent using VPNs, with domains traced to the UK and some European countries.
In previous cases, however, culprits were often younger individuals acting alone. Last December, police tracked down a student who sent a hoax bomb threat to his school to avoid an examination. As he had used a regular email ID without a VPN, authorities were able to trace him quickly. He was counselled and later released.
In July this year, another case surfaced when a 12-year-old boy was found responsible for sending fake threats to St Stephen’s College and St Thomas School in Dwarka. The child admitted during counselling that he had randomly added institutional email IDs as he wanted schools to be shut down. He too had not used a VPN, which allowed police to identify him easily.
Also Read: 6 More Schools Receive Bomb Threats Today; Over 90 Schools Targeted This Week
Unsolved Threat Cases Continue
Last May, more than 200 schools in Delhi received similar hoax threats, while emails were also sent to hospitals, colleges, and even the Indira Gandhi International Airport. Many of these cases remain unsolved, particularly those routed through foreign VPN servers.With Wednesday’s fresh round of threats, police are once again urging calm while continuing their investigations. For now, the warnings have been dismissed as hoaxes, but the pattern of repeated false alarms continues to strain security agencies and unsettle the capital’s educational institutions.
