Nagpur/Mumbai: In an unprecedented security scare that sent shockwaves through Maharashtra’s judicial establishment, several District and Sessions Courts across the State, including courts in the Vidarbha region, received bomb threat emails simultaneously on Monday afternoon, prompting an emergency evacuation and a statewide security alert.
The coordinated threats reportedly targeted courts across Mumbai, Konkan, Western Maharashtra, North Maharashtra, Marathwada and Vidarbha. Among the affected judicial establishments was the District and Sessions Court in Amravati, while several other district courts in the region were also reportedly covered by the threatening communication.
The incident assumed serious proportions as Monday, being the first working day of the week, witnessed a heavy influx of litigants, advocates, judges and court employees. The sudden threat disrupted normal judicial proceedings, forcing authorities to suspend court work and evacuate the premises as a precautionary measure.
The Pune District and Sessions Court at Shivajinagar was among the prominent establishments targeted. Soon after the threatening email landed in the court’s official inbox, senior judicial authorities directed an immediate evacuation. Pune Police personnel took control of the entire court complex and moved judges, lawyers, employees and hundreds of litigants to safer locations. Security was tightened at all entry and exit points.
Bomb Detection and Disposal Squads (BDDS), dog squads and senior Crime Branch officials rushed to the Shivajinagar court premises. Intensive searches were launched across all floors, judges’ chambers, bar rooms, record rooms, washrooms and other facilities. Hundreds of vehicles parked within the premises were also subjected to security checks using metal detectors.
Vidarbha courts under security scanner
The simultaneous threats to judicial establishments in different parts of Maharashtra brought the security preparedness of courts across Vidarbha into sharp focus. Amravati was specifically among the districts mentioned in the list of affected courts, raising concerns over the possibility of a coordinated attempt to spread panic across the region’s judicial infrastructure.
Local police and bomb disposal teams were mobilised to secure the affected court buildings, evacuate occupants and conduct thorough searches. Similar precautionary measures were undertaken in other parts of the State, including Thane, Dindoshi in Mumbai, Nashik, Ratnagiri, Satara, Sangli, Solapur, Ahilyanagar, Beed, Parbhani and Hingoli.
Although the threatening emails triggered a massive security response, preliminary searches had not detected any explosive material at the locations covered by the initial reports.
Cyber agencies probe coordinated threat
The simultaneous targeting of multiple judicial establishments has raised serious questions about the source, motive and possible coordination behind the threats. Pune Cyber Police, the Maharashtra State Cyber Department and the Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS) have launched an intensive investigation to identify the unidentified persons responsible for sending the emails.
Investigators are examining the technical trail to establish whether the messages originated through VPN networks, proxy servers, fake domains or other means designed to conceal the sender’s identity.
Agencies are also investigating whether the incident was merely a hoax intended to paralyse court functioning and create public panic or whether it was part of a larger conspiracy aimed at intimidating the judicial system.
The incident has exposed the vulnerability of critical judicial infrastructure to coordinated cyber-enabled threats. With courts across Maharashtra forced to suspend proceedings and undertake emergency security checks, the authorities are now under pressure to trace the perpetrators and ensure that such threats do not recur.
Police have appealed to citizens and litigants not to believe or circulate unverified information and to maintain calm while the investigation and security checks continue.
