India’s top metro cities Delhi and Bengaluru were gripped by chaos and fear on July 18 as more than 80 private educational institutions received graphic and disturbing bomb threat emails, triggering one of the largest coordinated police and emergency response operations in recent memory. The emails, sent from an anonymous ID ([email protected]), warned of multiple explosive devices allegedly planted inside school classrooms, laced with detailed threats of mass murder, suicidal violence, and anti-psychiatry hatred.
The emails targeted some of the most prominent schools in both cities, leading to mass evacuations, lockdowns, and the deployment of Bomb Detection and Disposal Squads (BDDS), anti-sabotage teams, and cyber investigation units. While no explosives were found, the graphic content and the scale of the threat are unprecedented, prompting security experts to warn that India could be witnessing either the actions of a digital psychopath or a coordinated cyber psychological terror campaign.
The email, which surfaced almost simultaneously in multiple inboxes across Bengaluru and Delhi early July 18, morning, was titled “BOMBS INSIDE THE SCHOOL.” The body of the message was deeply disturbing, containing repeated death threats and references to explosives specifically trinitrotoluene (TNT) hidden in black plastic bags inside school classrooms.
“The explosives are skillfully hidden in black plastic bags. I will erase every last one of you from this world. Not a single soul will survive. I will gladly laugh when I watch the news, only to see the parents show up at the school and to be greeted by the cold, dismembered bodies of their children.”
The email then took a dark turn, detailing the sender’s apparent hatred towards society and the mental health system, vowing suicide by slitting throat and wrists, and demanding that the email be forwarded to the media.
“I truly hate my life. I will commit suicide after the news kicks in… Psychiatrists, psychologists – no one has ever cared. You only care about medicating the helpless and clueless humans. You brainwash people into thinking psychiatric meds can help them. But they don’t. I am living proof they do not.” The email closes with a chilling declaration, “You all deserve this. You deserve to suffer just like me.”
Bengaluru: 40 Schools on high alert, Police mobilisation across city
In Bengaluru, the threat email was received by at least 40 schools across multiple zones including Rajarajeshwari Nagar, Kengeri, Jayanagar, and Whitefield. The moment reports surfaced, Bengaluru City Police swung into action with dozens of quick response teams, dog squads, and BDDS units deployed across campuses.
“We treated every threat as real. No school was cleared until every classroom, storeroom, and facility was physically checked,” said an officer involved in the operation. Panic spread rapidly through WhatsApp groups of parents and school officials. Several schools informed parents not to send their children to school or asked them to take their wards home mid-morning.
The capital was no exception. At least 45 schools across New Delhi, including St Xavier’s School (Civil Lines), Richmond Global School (Paschim Vihar), Abhinav Public School (Rohini), and The Sovereign School (Rohini) received the identical threat email.
This marks the fourth consecutive day that schools in Delhi were targeted by such emails. Earlier this week:
- On July 14, three city schools received hoax bomb threats.
- On July 15, St Stephen’s College (North Campus) and St Thomas School (Dwarka) received similarly worded threats.
- On July 16, seven more schools received emails, including one traced to a 12-year-old boy in South Delhi who sent the message using his personal smartphone as a prank.
“This is more than a prank. The sophistication and volume suggest we are either dealing with a highly disturbed individual with significant tech skills or an orchestrated attack on the public psyche,” said cybercrime specialist and former RAW technical analyst, Dr Anupam Dutta.
While no bombs were found, the psychological impact has been massive. Teachers were seen weeping. Children were terrified. Parents raced to campuses to pick up their children amid frenzied police activity. “My son didn’t sleep all night. He kept asking me if there were really bombs in his school. These threats may be hoaxes, but they’re traumatising our children,” said Rashmi Kaul, a parent whose child studies in a South Delhi school. Mental health professionals have urged the government to initiate counselling drives in schools, and called for emergency mental health response mechanisms as part of disaster preparedness.
Cybercrime units in Delhi and Bengaluru are now working with central agencies including:
- Indian Computer Emergency Response Team (CERT-In)
- National Technical Research Organisation (NTRO)
- Intelligence Bureau (IB)
- Interpol (as the email servers may be hosted overseas)
The sender’s identity remains unknown, though leads suggest usage of Virtual Private Networks (VPNs) and encrypted email domains to obscure location. Investigators are looking into potential digital footprints left behind and examining whether the same threat has been replicated in other cities or nations.
