Bomb threat to Somnath Temple, Gujarat BJP offices; search finds nothing

An email received on Monday threatened to blow up the famous Somnath Temple and BJP offices in Ahmedabad and Gandhinagar. Gujarat police issued a security alert as soon as the threatening email was received. However, the investigation turned up nothing.

As soon as police learned of the threat, a search operation was launched with the help of a bomb detection team, a bomb disposal team and a dog squad. The threat mentioned the BJP office in the Khanpur area of Ahmedabad, the party's state office Kamalam in Koba, Gandhinagar, and the Somnath Temple. According to police, no suspicious item was found at any of these locations during the search.

Ahmedabad C-Division ACP Advait Gandhi said the state intelligence department in Gandhinagar received the information at 9 am, after which a search operation was carried out at the BJP office in Khanpur. He said additional police force was also deployed there at the time.

Advait Gandhi also clarified that the threatening email named the Somnath Temple and the BJP office in Koba as well, but nothing suspicious was found there either and the situation remained normal. He appealed to people not to panic, saying police were investigating the matter thoroughly.

Carrying electronic gadgets and certain other items into the Somnath Temple is already prohibited. Security guards are posted at the temple round the clock and devotees are checked at two points. Despite this, senior Somnath police officer M. F. Chaudhary said temple security had been further increased on the instructions of senior police officers. He too said there was no cause for people and devotees to panic.

Police are searching for the person who sent the threatening email, but no concrete lead has been found so far. Security agencies across Gujarat are on alert and surveillance has been increased at key locations.