Nine hotels in Lucknow, 2 flights get bomb threats, ransom sought

The threat to the hotels was received via anonymous emails with the same content demanding a ransom of nearly ₹50 lakh.

Nine prominent hotels in Lucknow and two flights -- Bengaluru to Delhi via Gorakhpur and Bengaluru to Ayodhya – received bomb threats on Sunday, police said.

The emails claimed that explosive devices were planted in black bags across hotel premises. (FOR REPRESENTATION)

The threat to the hotels was received via anonymous emails with the same content demanding a ransom of nearly ₹50 lakh.

The emails claimed that explosive devices were planted in black bags across hotel premises.

The sender warned that any attempt to defuse the bombs would lead to mass casualties, prompting an immediate emergency response.

All the emails were similar in nature, indicating that they came from a similar sender, a person familiar with the issue said.

“Bombs are hidden in black bags on the grounds of your hotel. I want USD 55,000, or I will detonate the explosives and blood will spill everywhere. Any attempt at defusing the bombs will detonate them,” read one such threat email.

The hotels are situated in upscale neighbourhoods, including Gomtinagar, Hazratganj, Sarojini Nagar and Alambagh.

Assistant commissioner of police, Hazratganj, Arvind Kumar, confirmed that threat emails were sent to nine hotels and they have roped in the cyber cell to detect the location and the origination point.

In response to the threats, police sent the Cyber Cell to investigate the email’s source, while bomb detection squad along with dog squad launched a massive operation to rid the hotels of any possible threats

“Simultaneously, the bomb detection and disposal squad has been informed along with the dog squad for conducting a check as a precautionary measure in the hotels,” ACP Arvind Kumar said.

The hotels have ramped up security under police guidance, while heightened alert measures have been imposed citywide.

Meanwhile, airport security was tightened in Lucknow after bomb threats to the two flights. Searches were conducted by bomb squad personnel.

CISF, along with police is conducting checks, as per the SOP, a senior officer said.

Meanwhile, the bomb threat reported on an Akasa Air flight, en route from Bengaluru to Delhi via Gorakhpur, was found hoax after inspection.

During a thorough inspection at the Gorakhpur airport, no suspicious item was found, Gorakhpur Airport director RK Parasher said.

The flight landed in Gorakhpur at 1:33 pm and the door opened at 1:50 pm. The aircraft was carrying 174 passengers and three infants. The inspection of the aircraft and the passengers continued till 2:42 pm and the flight took off at 3:43 pm for Delhi, Parasher said.

Ahead of the plane’s arrival, the airport saw a high-security response, with police, Indian Air Force, bomb detection and disposal squad, fire brigade, and medical teams arriving on the site. Passengers were safely evacuated, and a thorough inspection of the aircraft was conducted, revealing no suspicious items. Following the all-clear, the flight continued its journey to Delhi.

An Akasa Air flight had received a similar bomb threat two days ago on the same route.

Akasa Air on Sunday said 15 of its flights got security alerts and after thorough inspections, all aircraft were released for operations.

Authorities have been grappling with a number of hoax bomb threats targeting Indian airlines during the last fortnight.

In 14 days, more than 350 flights operated by Indian carriers have received hoax bomb threats, most of them through social media.

A number of threatening emails were received by schools, malls and other establishments in Delhi-NCR in recent months and they turned out to be hoax.