The question India’s friends in the West have to ask: Is there any link between the spate of hoax bomb threats that have disrupted the country’s aviation industry in the last fortnight and the open bombing threat to Indian Air-India flight passengers by a Khalistani terrorist, Gurpatwant Singh Pannun.
Indian domestic and international carriers have so far faced over 250 hoax calls about bomb threats to flights since mid-October. The hoax calls made via social media have disrupted the travel plans of millions of passengers apart from putting their lives at risk.
The problem is India cannot take even a single call lightly as the implications of a real threat are unimaginable. So, even though the calls and messages are turning out to be hoaxes, there is no laxity in due diligence for every case. This is time-consuming, and disruptive and increases the chances of people’s frustration and fears.
Indian enforcement agencies have not been able to nab the culprits yet. The government of India has asked Meta and X to furnish details of the IP addresses from where the hoax calls originated. Sources claim most of the messages and calls are from somewhere in Europe or even in India using VPN accounts.
India has reached out to the international community to fight the threat menace. Strangely, no statement has been forthcoming so far from any Western power. The intelligence alliance of the Five Eyes countries – the US, Canada, The UK, Australia, and New Zealand – is still to formally present any evidence it has.
It is clear some vested interest, which is probably based out of India, or already in India, is behind the hoax calls and messages.
And amid this dangerous spree comes the threat by Khalistani terrorist, Gurpatwant Singh Pannun.
The American-Canadian wanted in India for terrorist activities, has been issuing anti-Indian messages and public videos.
Recently, he cautioned Indian passengers not to fly Air India between November 1 and 19. The terrorist has warned of an attack on an Air India flight during this period, coinciding with the 40th anniversary of the 1984 anti-Sikh riots.
Pannun’s terror threat has come when the US and Canada have created a diplomatic row over issues related to Khalistani elements. The Americans allege an Indian-based plan to assassinate the terrorist, Pannun. Canada, meanwhile, claims India was behind the killing of another Khalistani terrorist, Hardeep Singh Nijjar, in Canada. The latter has even targeted the Indian High Commissioner whom India has since recalled home.
In November 2023, too, terrorist Pannun released a video claiming that Delhi’s Indira Gandhi International Airport would be renamed and would remain closed on November 19, warning people against flying on Air India that day.
The National Investigation Agency charged him with criminal conspiracy, promoting enmity between different groups on the grounds of religion, and various offences under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA).
In December of the same year, he issued a threat to the Indian Parliament. He also threatened to kill the Punjab chief minister and the state’s police chief.
Pannun has been designated a terrorist by the Ministry of Home Affairs since July 2020 on charges of sedition and secessionism, as he leads SFJ, a group advocating for a separate sovereign Sikh state. A year prior to this, India banned SFJ as an “unlawful association” for engaging in “anti-national and subversive” activities.
The uncanny similarity of targets of the hoax social media calls and terrorist Pannun’s message is disconcerting. The US and Canada have not shown the same alacrity to share intelligence information with India as they shared between them when targeting India over the alleged plots to kill Khalistani terrorists.
India is in the process of strengthening the protocols of its Bomb Threat Assessment Committee (BTAC). The BTAC usually comprises representatives of the Central Industrial Security Force (CISF), the Bureau of Civil Aviation Security (BCAS), the airline concerned, and the airport operator.
Union Civil Aviation minister, K Rammohan Naidu has termed these hoaxes as “isolated incidents”. However, with the holiday travel rush starting, prompt response is needed to ensure that the repeat offenders are identified swiftly and nabbed. The government has held meetings with X and Meta and has asked them to promptly share details about the user handles that sent out the false warnings, media reports said.
Directors of the CSIF and BCAS have briefed Union Home Secretary Govind Mohan and discussed ways to tackle the situation on the ground. Another immediate effect has been the amendments to the BTAC protocol utilised to classify the threats as specific. Per an agency report, “the protocol undertaken by the BTAC has been tweaked and a fine assessment, acting on a set of new ‘red flags’, is being undertaken now.”
According to media reports, the government is also planning to take legislative action to deal with bomb hoaxes on airlines and make the punishments harsher to deter such threats. Among the moves in the works are changes to the Aircraft Security Rules and amendments to the Suppression of Unlawful Acts against Safety of Civil Aviation (SUASCA) Act, 1982, the civil aviation minister has said.
The unending threats are adding to an alarming trend. Though hoaxes, they have caused significant disruptions, necessitating flight diversions and leaving passengers and authorities on edge. Millions of passengers are on tenterhooks and over 40 airports are tackling mighty disruptions in infrastructure and logistics, apart from facing passenger ire.