Bomb threat emails reach courts in several Maharashtra districts; Beed court complex evacuated

Sessions courts in several districts of Maharashtra have received threats to blow them up with bombs. The courts in Thane, Sangli, Solapur, Beed, Parbhani, Hingoli and Ahilyanagar are said to have received an email carrying the threat. Police are on alert everywhere, and bomb disposal squads have begun searches.

The most disruption was in Beed. The email threatening to blow up the district sessions court caused panic in the area. As soon as news of the threat came, the entire court was evacuated as a precaution. The bomb detection squad and police officers reached the spot, and the court complex is being searched. Cyber police are also trying to trace where the email came from. The effort is to resume court work as soon as possible.

According to the information available, the email was sent to the official email ID of Judge Shinde of the Beed district and sessions court. It said the court building would be blown up. As the matter was serious, security agencies were informed immediately. All lawyers, litigants, staff and members of the public in the court were moved out safely and the whole complex was vacated.

After the threat email was received, senior police officers, personnel of the Bomb Detection and Disposal Squad (BDDS) and the dog squad also reached the spot. Suspicious spots are being searched and combed in detail. A cyber police team is conducting a technical investigation into who sent the message and from where. How much substance the contents of the email have is also being checked.

Senior Police Inspector Shitalkumar Ballal said, "After the email came, our team is searching for the bomb. All our senior officers have reached the spot and the cyber police are also investigating. We are finding out how much truth there is in it, and our effort is to get the court work going again as soon as possible." Beed Police have appealed to the public and lawyers to stay calm. Police have asked people not to crowd the court complex and to cooperate.

The Thane sessions court has also received an email threatening to blow it up with a bomb. After Satara and Beed, Thane has now been added. District and sessions courts in different districts of the state are receiving such emails and messages, so security agencies are vigilant. In Thane, police evacuated the court complex as a precaution after the threat email was received. Staff, lawyers and citizens present there were moved out for safety, and security at the complex was tightened further.

Given the seriousness of the matter, police called the BDDS to Thane. The squad is checking suspicious objects in the court complex. It has not yet emerged officially exactly where the threat email was sent from, how much truth there is in the threat, or whether any suspicious object or explosive has been found.

The threats being received by courts across the state have made the question of court security a larger one. Who is behind them and what the motive is will become clear only after the police investigation.