RDX-cyanide bomb threats rock MP:12 emails warn of drone attacks on govt buildings, hospitals; agencies yet to trace sender

February 19, 2026. The Dean of People’s College of Medical Sciences in Bhopal was in his office around 9:30 am. Student counselling was underway, lectures were about to begin, and nearly 1,000 students and faculty members were present in the five-storey building. At around 9:50 am, the Dean received an email. What he read left him stunned — it was a threat to blow up the college using a cyanide poison bomb. Panic gripped the campus soon after, and by 11 am, police had evacuated the entire premises. This was not an isolated case. In just the first 20 days of March, similar bomb threats were reported at AIIMS, JK Hospital, the District Court, and several key government offices. A series of such emails has kept security agencies on high alert. They have disrupted hospital services, stalled court proceedings, and created hours of fear and uncertainty in government offices. The only relief so far is that all these threats have turned out to be hoaxes. Still, the incidents raise serious questions — who is behind these emails? What is the motive? Is it the work of an individual or an organized network? And most importantly, why have police and cyber agencies failed to trace this ‘digital ghost’ despite repeated attempts? Bhaskar spoke to experts and officials to find answers. Understand those hours of terror through five cases March 2: Cyanide Bomb Scare at AIIMS and People’s University
On March 2 around 3 PM, a threatening message was received on the official email IDs of AIIMS and People’s University. The sender wrote, ‘Cyanide poison bombs have been placed in your college, which will blast at 12:15 PM. Get the doctors and students evacuated by 11 AM. Allah Hu Akbar.’ This email caused panic. Taking immediate action, classrooms, hostels and even hospital wards were evacuated. Doctors left their treatments midway and came out, and many seriously ill patients were forced to leave the hospital with their relatives. For nearly four hours, bomb disposal squads and dog squads searched every corner. However, nothing was found. March 17: RDX threat at Weights and Measures Department
Just days after the AIIMS incident, on March 17, another threatening email arrived at the Weights and Measures Department office in Bhopal. At that time, routine work was going on in the office as usual. The email stated, ‘4 RDX bombs have been placed using Pakistani drones, which will explode at 2 o’clock. The explosion in the office… will be living proof of power.’ As soon as the information was received, the entire atmosphere changed. The office was immediately evacuated and employees stopped work and stood outside. The bomb disposal squad took charge once again and after hours of searching, this too was declared a hoax. March 18: One Day, Multiple Institutions Targeted
March 18 proved to be the most intense day for Bhopal. On this day, the series of threats suddenly intensified. JK Hospital, LN Medical College, District Court, Atal Bihari Vajpayee Hindi University, Passport Office, and Commercial Tax Department received similar threatening emails. The scene was similar everywhere – people were rushing out in panic, police and bomb squad vehicles were arriving with sirens blaring, and search operations continued for hours. The activities of this single day almost brought the city to a standstill. On the same day, similar threats were also received by the Divisional Commissioner’s Office and Labor Commissioner’s Office in Indore. March 20: Threat of 15 bombs in Satna District Court
This sequence reached Satna as well, where on March 20, there was a bomb threat to blow up the district court. An email received on the official ID of the Principal District and Sessions Judge’s office warned of 15 bombs exploding at 1 PM. Fortunately, due to it being a holiday, there weren’t many people in the premises. After investigation, no suspicious objects were found here either. Purpose behind the threats: Mischief or conspiracy?
A specific pattern was observed in all these emails. They attempted to spread terror by using words like RDX, cyanide, poisonous gas, and Pakistani drones. Some emails mentioned blasts after Islamic prayers and Jauhar prayers, while others gave bizarre reasoning about planting bombs in Bhopal to take revenge for Tamil Nadu politics. On this matter, Bhopal Police Commissioner Sanjay Kumar says that all these threats were received by institutions in Bhopal, which suggests this could be the work of some local mischievous elements. No clear message or motive has emerged behind this. The similar pattern in threats and targeting of Bhopal institutions indicates that this could be the act of a single person or group. Expert says – Tracing emails possible but complex process
Cyber law expert Yashdeep Chaturvedi explains this technical challenge in more detail about why VPN technology cannot be traced. According to him, tracing threatening emails is possible but it’s a complex process. Every email ‘header’ contains information about which servers it has passed through. If analyzed correctly, the source can be traced. He further explains that criminals often use VPN or proxy servers, which makes their IP address appear to be from another country. In such cases, we need to rely on international treaties (MLAT) to obtain information from that country, which takes considerable time. However, every device has a unique identifier, such as a device ID or MAC address, which cannot be completely hidden. If police track these identifiers along with the IP address, it’s possible to reach the real culprit. Impact of threats, fear among people and waste of resources
However, retired IPS officer NK Tripathi refuses to take this lightly. He says that sometimes such threats can be serious and may be linked to terrorist activities. Therefore, it is very important to get to the bottom of such threats. It cannot be ignored by considering it merely as mischief. They say that in Bhopal and Indore, these threats are not only affecting security agencies, but also common people and their work. Their impact is widespread. This is causing fear, disorder and waste of resources.