Ahmedabad, Surat courts receive bomb threat emails; premises evacuated, inspections underway

Several courts across Gujarat, including the Surat District Court and Ahmedabad courts, received emails warning of possible bomb attacks on Saturday, prompting security checks by the police and other agencies.

After the Surat District Court received a threat that a bomb would be used to blow up the premises, police teams and bomb disposal personnel were immediately deployed at the court. The teams carried out detailed security checks to see if there was any real threat.

Why are lawyers concerned?

The Law Society has expressed concern over what it described as repeated bomb threat emails targeting the courts. She also questioned the decision not to evacuate the premises after the latest threat, saying that due process had continued despite the warning.

“Even after receiving the bomb threat mail, the police have not left the court premises and the work is going on. The accused are not caught and they are heading straight for the judicial system,” said Bhavesh Rabari, member of the Gujarat Bar Council.

What measures have been taken?

Following the threatening email, security personnel conducted a precautionary search of the Surat court complex. Police and security agencies are also reviewing threat emails as part of their response to alerts received by Gujarat courts.

The Gurugram civic office received a bomb threat

Meanwhile, the Gurugram Municipal Corporation (MCG) office received a bomb threat email on Thursday, September 3, following which the police evacuated the premises as a precautionary measure.

The email, received at the company’s official email address around 11:38 a.m., threatened to detonate an improvised explosive device (IED) at 1:11 p.m., police said. A bomb squad and dog squad were deployed to the site, with security teams searching every floor of the building, including the offices, car park and other parts of the complex.

The premises were later checked again as a precaution. Police said no suspicious items were found during the event.

The threatening message named the Gurugram Municipal Corporation, Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann, a cricket stadium and several police stations in Punjab as targets. The sender claimed to be affiliated with the Khalistani National Army and cited revenge for the death of farmers and an alleged encounter with police in Punjab.

On September 3, a fake bomb threat was also received via e-mail on a judicial complex and a district council in Punjab. According to Superintendent of Police (SP) Ashwant Singh, a threat alert was received via email.

Speaking to ANI, he said, “On September 3, around 1 pm, an email was received at the Zila Parishad office and the court complex where a bomb threat was issued to both these offices.”