In a major security scare just a day before Ganesh Visarjan, Mumbai Police arrested a 51-year-old man from Noida for allegedly sending a WhatsApp message threatening multiple terror attacks across the city.
The accused, identified as Ashwini Kumar, a native of Patliputra in Bihar and an astrologer by profession, had been living in Noida for the last five years. He was arrested on Friday after the Mumbai Traffic Police’s official WhatsApp number received a chilling message claiming that 34 “human bombs” were planted across Mumbai and that 14 Pakistani terrorists had entered India.
The message, allegedly sent by an organisation calling itself “Lashkar-e-Jihadi,” also threatened to use 400 kg of RDX in coordinated blasts, saying it would “shake the entire city.” The timing of the threat, coming on the eve of Ganesh Visarjan, triggered a massive security response, with Mumbai placed on high alert and security deployment intensified across sensitive areas.
Police later traced the message to Ashwini Kumar, who admitted during questioning that he had sent the threat message in a bid to frame his friend Firoz. According to the FIR, Ashwini had previously spent three months in jail in 2023 following a case filed by Firoz in Phulwari Sharif, Patna. Seeking revenge, he sent the WhatsApp threat using Firoz’s name.
During the arrest, police recovered seven mobile phones, three SIM cards, six memory card holders, one SIM slot external, two digital cards, four SIM card holders and one memory card holder from Ashwini’s possession.
Ashwini has been taken to Mumbai for further interrogation, and police are investigating whether he had any links to terror outfits or acted alone.
