Another bomb threat email to ISRO headquarters in Bengaluru sparks security scare

BENGALURU: The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) Headquarters, Antariksha Bhavan, on New BEL Road was once again placed on high alert on Monday after receiving a fresh bomb threat email, barely a week after police cracked a similar hoax threat by tracing the accused to Uttar Pradesh.According to police, the threatening email was sent around 9 pm on Sunday and was noticed by ISRO staff when they checked their official emails at around 10. 45am on Monday. The message, written in English, claimed that a bomb had been planted inside the ISRO Headquarters and that the blast would take place by 2pm.The alert triggered an immediate security response. The entire staff was evacuated. The Central Industrial Security Force (CISF), the Bomb Detection and Disposal Squad (BDDS), the dog squad, and the Sanjaynagar police rushed to the premises and conducted a thorough search of the headquarters.

No explosives or suspicious objects were found, and the threat was declared a hoax.Police also carried out precautionary checks at the ISRO Telemetry Tracking and Command Network (ISTRAC) office in Peenya Industrial Area, Phase II, where nothing suspicious was detected.The latest threat comes after the ISRO Headquarters received a similar bomb threat email on July 2. The earlier threat email was in Tamil, a senior police officer said.

In that case, the police traced the email to Ghaziabad in Uttar Pradesh and identified the accused as Nishanth Tyagi, 36, on July 3. He was later found to be suffering from mental illness. He was interrogated and served with a notice to appear before the Investigating Officer (IO) whenever summoned.Sanjaynagar police have now launched a fresh investigation to trace the origin of the latest email and identify the sender. The ISRO Administrative Officer has filed a complaint. A non-cognisable case has been registered, and after obtaining permission from the court, an FIR will be registered under the Information Technology Act.