Man behind Jet Airways flight hoax tweet traced to Jaipur:

Image
Press Trust of India Chandigarh
Last Updated : Jul 10 2015 | 5:57 PM IST
The man whose twitter handle was found to be behind yesterday's bomb hoax on an international Jet Airways flight has been traced to Jaipur, police said here today.
"We have traced the man. He is currently living in Jaipur and we have accordingly informed the police there today," Ludhiana Police Commissioner Pramod Ban told PTI over the phone.
Ludhiana Police succeeded in establishing contact over the phone today with 25-year-old Surinder Pratap, who has admitted to having posted the tweet, said Ludhiana Deputy Commissioner of Police, Naveen Singla.
"Pratap hails from Uttar Pradesh. Currently, he is living in Jaipur. Around six months back, he had come to Ludhiana for some work and lived here for a small period of time," said Singla.
Pratap claims to have "casually" posted the tweet from his account, which was created recently, and by the same name, without knowing its repercussions.
"He has been working in Jaipur for some time now and is employed as an HR executive with an MNC," the DCP said.
A Dubai-bound Jet Airways flight from Mumbai with 61 passengers and crew had made an emergency landing at Muscat airport yesterday following a tweet about the presence of a bomb on board. The flight was later cleared for onward travel after the message turned out to be hoax.
Preliminary investigation by Ludhiana Police suggested that Pratap, who is around 25 years of age, "opened his twitter account four to five days back".
"We have talked to him over the phone. He has admitted to having posted the tweet casually and without knowing what his action was going to lead to.
"Today, we informed Jaipur Police about the whole thing and put the entire facts before them. I personally talked to the Commissioner of Jaipur Police," he said.
Asked if Ludhiana Police had registered any case against Pratap, he said, "The tweet was made from Jaipur. Now, it is for them to take the case further.
*Subscribe to Business Standard digital and get complimentary access to The New York Times

Smart Quarterly

₹900

3 Months

₹300/Month

SAVE 25%

Smart Essential

₹2,700

1 Year

₹225/Month

SAVE 46%
*Complimentary New York Times access for the 2nd year will be given after 12 months

Super Saver

₹3,900

2 Years

₹162/Month

Subscribe

Renews automatically, cancel anytime

Here’s what’s included in our digital subscription plans

Exclusive premium stories online

  • Over 30 premium stories daily, handpicked by our editors

Complimentary Access to The New York Times

  • News, Games, Cooking, Audio, Wirecutter & The Athletic

Business Standard Epaper

  • Digital replica of our daily newspaper — with options to read, save, and share

Curated Newsletters

  • Insights on markets, finance, politics, tech, and more delivered to your inbox

Market Analysis & Investment Insights

  • In-depth market analysis & insights with access to The Smart Investor

Archives

  • Repository of articles and publications dating back to 1997

Ad-free Reading

  • Uninterrupted reading experience with no advertisements

Seamless Access Across All Devices

  • Access Business Standard across devices — mobile, tablet, or PC, via web or app

More From This Section

First Published: Jul 10 2015 | 5:57 PM IST

Next Story