PATNA: A fake call claiming that a bomb was planted at the Jayaprakash Narayan International Airport in Patna, the capital of Bihar, created panic among security personnel on Wednesday. The call was received on a landline number in the morning, prompting authorities to beef up security at the airport.
According to a senior official, the entire terminal building, parking area, and office building were thoroughly checked by security forces, but no bomb was found. Senior Superintendent of Police Rajeev Mishra confirmed that the call turned out to be fake and no suspicious object was found in the area.
VIDEO | "It was just a rumour," says Patna SSP Rajiv Mishra on the bomb threat a Patna airport official received earlier today. pic.twitter.com/vs1uN9OBfr
— Press Trust of India (@PTI_News) April 12, 2023
Mishra added that the search operation was conducted without disturbing the passengers, and the matter is being further investigated. The incident caused some disruptions and delays at the airport, but operations have since returned to normal.
Bihar | Samastipur police have taken the caller into custody. Initial inquiry revealed that the person had made the call under the influence of alcohol. Detailed inquiry is being done. The phone from which the call was made has been recovered. Prima facie it appears to be a hoax… https://t.co/PhtN5dTzPU pic.twitter.com/iyUqTLpgu8
— ANI (@ANI) April 12, 2023
However, Patna SSP Rajeev Mishra later said, “Samastipur Police has taken the caller into custody. Preliminary inquiry revealed that the person was in an inebriated state when he made the call. Further detailed inquiries have been done.” Going. The phone from which the call was made has been recovered. Prima facie it seems that it was a hoax call.”
Samastipur SP Vinay Tiwari said, “Sudhanshu Shekhar alias Mukund, who threatened to blow up Darbhanga and Patna airport, has been arrested from Punjabi Colony under Nagar police station area. Police has also seized the mobile of the accused. In the investigation, the accused seems to be mentally ill and addicted to alcohol. Even after being arrested, he was intoxicated.”