At least 45 private schools, three DU colleges receive hoax bomb threat e-mails

At least 45 private schools and three Delhi University colleges received hoax bomb threat e-mails on Friday morning, creating panic among students, parents and teachers and putting agencies on tenterhooks.

This was the highest single-day tally of bomb hoax threats received by educational institutions in the Capital this year. At least 55 academic institutions in the city have been targeted in the past four days.

An officer said that shortly after being alerted to the threats, teams from Delhi Police, Delhi Fire Services, Bomb Disposal Squad, and dog squads were dispatched to the sites. The premises were evacuated and thoroughly searched but nothing suspicious was found.

The schools that were targeted included Richmondd Global School in Paschim Vihar, Bharti Public School in Swasthya Vihar, Hamdard Public School in Talimabad, St. Xavier’s Senior Sec. School on Raj Niwas Marg, Mira Nursery School in Janakpuri, Delhi International Public School in Rohini, The British School in Chanakyapuri, North Delhi Public School in Shalimar Bagh, Delhi Public School on Mathura Road, Delhi Public School in R.K. Puram, Amity International School in Saket and Cambridge Foundation School in Rajouri Garden.

DU’s Indraprastha College for Women, Hindu College, and Shri Ram College of Commerce were also targeted.

The police suspect that a Germany-based encrypted e-mail service, Tuta Mail, was used by the accused to issue the threats.

Earlier this week, the police had apprehended a 12-year-old boy for allegedly sending hoax bomb threats  to St. Stephen’s College and St. Thomas School on Tuesday.

“The e-mails sent today indicate that the person behind them is facing mental health problems,” said a senior officer.

The police are planning to rope in mental health experts, apart from cybersecurity specialists, for the investigation.

Rishabh Gupta, the CEO and managing director of Richmondd Global School, which received a bomb threat for the second time this week, said the classes went undisrupted as the threat e-mail was received around 5 a.m. and the premises were thoroughly checked and declared safe by the time students started reaching the school.

Parents in distress

However, for Sunil Balyan, whose daughter studies in Class 7 at St. Thomas School, Dwarka, it was a distressing morning.

“At 6 a.m., the school circulated a message saying there would be no classes. This was the third time this week that classes were called off. Internal tests are under way and our children’s studies are being affected.”

Following a directive from the Delhi High Court, the Directorate of Education (DoE) has notified standard operating procedures for managing bomb threats in schools, which include installing CCTV cameras, developing evacuation plans, and conducting regular safety audits and mock drills.

Aprajita Gautam, the Delhi Parents Association president, said, “The DoE should provide security-related information and raise awareness about the impact of such hoax calls.”