A day after Delhi explosion, three CRPF schools receive bomb threats

Panic gripped Delhi on Sunday morning following a blast near a CRPF school in the Prashant Vihar area of Rohini, with initial investigation suggesting it could have been caused by a crude bomb

Two schools in Delhi were among three Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) schools which received hoax bomb threats on Monday night, a day after a blast took place in the national capital’s Rohini area, triggering panic among locals.

The blast happened near a CRPF school in the Prashant Vihar area of Rohini on Sunday morning, following which a probe was launched into the incident. On Tuesday, officials from the CRPF, National Investigation Agency (NIA) and Delhi Police reached the spot to take stock of the situation.

Besides Delhi, the latest hoax bomb threats was also sent to a school in Medchal near Hyderabad. News agency ANI reported that the threat was sent using an email circulated to the management of these schools late Monday night.

Earlier, the IED Management, Pune, and the Forensic Science Laboratory (FSL) had visited the blast site to investigate the case. No one was injured in the Rohini blast, which was captured on a nearby CCTV. Based on a preliminary probe, officials said that it could have been caused by a crude bomb.

The area has been cordoned off and samples have been collected by the forensic teams to identify the exact cause of the blast. Subsequently, security was stepped up in the national capital in view of the upcoming festive season. According to the police, the wall of the school collapsed due to the explosion. A nearby car on standby and few shops in the vicinity were also damaged.

Local residents said the explosion was “intense” and there was a foul smell in the area after the blast.

What have the experts found at the blast site

According to experts, a suspicious “white powder” material has been recovered from the site and sent for examination in the laboratory. Soil samples of the area have also been sent for testing. They said that the powder could be a mixture of ammonium nitrate and chloride.

The police are also collecting the mobile data to identify people who were present nearby when the explosion happened.

Following the incident, NSG commandos deployed robots in the area to search for suspicious materials. The probe was launched after the Delhi Fire Services (DFS) received a call about the explosion, following which two fire engines were rushed to the spot.

(With ANI, PTI inputs)