Delhi’s historic Red Fort on Thursday received a bomb threat after a caller alerted Mumbai Police. Delhi Police carried out an extensive security check at the Red Fort area. Later it was declared a hoax. The threat targeting Lal Quila triggered a major security concern before authorities declared the red alert in nearby areas. The threat prompted police teams to sanitise the premises after information was received from Mumbai Police, officials said.
According to the officials, an unidentified caller contacted the Mumbai Police Control Room and claimed that the Red Fort would be blown up.
Mumbai Police immediately shared the information with the Delhi Police Control Room, which in turn alerted the North District Police. Security personnel rushed to the Red Fort and carried out a comprehensive search and sanitisation exercise.
After completing the inspection, police confirmed that no explosive or suspicious object was found, and the threat was declared a hoax.
The bomb scare comes nearly eight months after a high-intensity vehicle-borne improvised explosive device (IED) blast near the Red Fort Metro Station claimed 15 lives and injured more than a dozen people.
Investigators had identified the driver of the vehicle involved in that blast as Umar-un-Nabi, a Kashmiri doctor employed at Al-Falah University in Faridabad.
According to the investigation, the explosion occurred on the same day authorities recovered around 2,900 kg of explosives, including ammonium nitrate, from Faridabad in neighbouring Haryana. Investigators had alleged that the accused panicked and triggered the blast after two key members of the alleged terror module were arrested and the explosives were seized.
Police had identified other accused in the case as Muzaffar Ahmed Rather, Mufti Irfan Ahmad Wagay and Shaheen Saeed. Investigators had alleged that the group was part of a “white-collar” terror module linked to Ansar Ghazwat-ul-Hind.
In May, Delhi Police’s Special Cell arrested nine alleged operatives said to have links with Pakistan’s Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) and fugitive gangster Dawood Ibrahim.
According to police, the accused were allegedly planning attacks on key installations and security personnel in Delhi, Mumbai and other parts of the country. Sources had indicated that potential targets included airports, railway stations, nuclear facilities and power plants.