CM Siddaramaiah along with Cabinet Ministers of Karnataka received bombing threat mail

Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah and his cabinet ministers received a threatening email on Tuesday, stating that an explosion would occur in Bengaluru on Saturday at 2:48 pm. The email, sent by someone named Shahid Khan using the address shahidkhan10786@protonmail(.)com, demanded $2.5 million to prevent the purported attack on busy places like restaurants, temples, buses, and trains.

The mail threatened to detonate bombs in public areas, including an upcoming event, the Ambari Utsav bus. It also mentioned plans to escalate demands on social media and threatened to upload screenshots of the email. The targeted officials included CM Siddaramaiah, Deputy CM DK Shivakumar, the state home minister, and the Bengaluru police chief.The email demanded a ransom of ₹20 crore to avert the attack, prompting authorities to initiate an investigation. Deputy CM Shivakumar expressed uncertainty about the credibility of the threat and informed that the police were investigating the matter.

This incident follows an IED blast at Rameshwaram Cafe in Bengaluru on March 1, which injured several people. The National Investigation Agency (NIA) has taken over the investigation, exploring possible links to previous incidents in Coimbatore and Mangaluru.With the connection to Cafe Blast, a case was registered under Explosive-related acts by the Bengaluru Police. Officials assured residents that investigations were ongoing, with multiple teams examining various angles, including potential motives and suspects. They urged cooperation from the opposition and emphasized the need to treat the matter as a security issue rather than a political one.

[Image Source: thehindu.com]