Amid a barrage of bomb threats received by airlines over the past few days, the Union Ministry of Electronics and IT today blasted social media platform X (formerly Twitter) through which many of these hoaxes were circulated.
Joint Secretary Sanket S Bhondve chaired a virtual meeting with representatives of airlines and social media platforms such as X and Meta. The official said that the situation amounts to “X abetting crime” and questioned its representatives on the steps taken to stop such alarming rumours from spreading, sources have said.
More than 120 flights operated by Indian carriers have received bomb threats over the past few days. Even yesterday, 30 flights operated by IndiGo, Vistara and Air India received such threats. The airlines said they followed standard operating procedures: authorities were alerted and security protocols were followed.
During a briefing on the situation on Monday, Civil Aviation Minister K Rammohan Naidu said the government is trying to tackle it without compromising passengers’ safety. He added that those circulating such hoax threats will face tough action, including being put on a no-fly list.
The government plans to amend the Suppression of Unlawful Acts against Safety of Civil Aviation Act so that action could be initiated for offences when an aircraft is on the ground. Currently, the aviation security norms largely cover in-flight offences.
“We are trying to make amendments and the legal team has worked on it… We need consultations with other ministries also… we are definitively pushing forward to have changes in the Act also so that it addresses offences that happen when the flight is on the ground and also make it cognizable offence,” he said.
Asked if there could be a conspiracy behind the barrage of threats, the minister said a thorough investigation was underway.
“Without investigation, we cannot put out any pattern… let us wait for the completion of the investigation,” he added.