New Delhi,November 4
The Maharashtra Police have arrested a writer from Nagpur in Maharashtra, for allegedly sending over 100 hoax bomb threats to airlines, the Prime Minister's Office and top government officials, through calls and emails.
The police have identified him as Jagdish Uikey, a resident of Gondia, was detained in Nagpur after arriving from Delhi. He was previously arrested in 2021 in a related case. Uikey has written a book on terrorism.
According to the police, Uikey allegedly sent numerous emails claiming bombs were planted in various locations, warning of blasts. His emails included threats to major political leaders and government officials, such as Union Railways Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw and Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis.
The police tracked Uikey through his IP address after his emails hinted at terror attacks and demanded meetings with officials to share “critical information” on security threats. He is said to have threatened explosions at 30 locations across India.
The Nagpur police told media that one of his emails threatened to hijack 31 flights from airlines like IndiGo, Vistara, SpiceJet, and Air India, claiming that six airports across India were on the radar of the Jaish-e-Mohammed terrorist group. The threatening emails prompted authorities to increase security measures and put the CISF on alert at all major airports.
The investigators who seized his laptop and others gadgets found that Uikey coded his messages, using letters to represent locations: "M" for markets, "R" for railways, and "A" for airlines, making it more challenging for authorities to decipher his threats. He reprotedly visited Delhi on October 28, where he entered the Prime Minister’s Office to dispatch certain documents.
In the email to Fadnavis, Jagdish he had claimed that if his demands were not met, he would begin a protest with five people at Trikoni Maidan, Dharampeth, Nagpur, from October 28. The locations he threatened to target included 5 markets, 5 bus stands, 6 airline companies, 6 airports, 5 temples, 5 trains, 5 railway stations, the President, the Supreme Court, the Prime Minister's Office, and the Home Minister.
The police stated that so far there are no links of his to terrorism or terror groups however he is being thoroughly grilled by investigators.
