Bhubaneswar, Jan 8 (PTI) Judicial work in several courts, including the Orissa High Court, resumed around 3 pm on Thursday after remaining suspended for hours following hoax e-mails threatening to blast court premises, Law Minister Prithiviraj Harichandan said.
The anonymous e-mails were sent to courts in Cuttack, Sambalpur and Deogarh, prompting Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi to order a probe and police to launch search operations. No suspicious devices were found.
“Several courts in the country have received such anonymous threat mails. There is no cause for alarm. The origin of the messages will be identified shortly. After thorough searches conducted by security teams, court operations have fully resumed,” Harichandan told reporters.
Advocate General Pitambar Acharya said work in the Orissa High Court and three district courts resumed immediately after security personnel completed search operations.
DGP Y B Khurania said police evacuated courts as a precaution, conducted checks, and enhanced security arrangements at all locations.
Khurania, who spoke to Majhi and Home department additional chief secretary immediately after receipt of the e-mails said, “An anonymous email containing a threat to damage court premises by 2.35 pm was received at several courts. Police have taken cognisance of the matter and initiated a thorough investigation.” The chief minister held discussions with senior officials, including the Chief Secretary and DGP, and directed them to identify the culprits and ascertain the motive behind the threats.
“There should be no complacency in protecting the lives of the common people,” a CMO statement said.
Though no specific threat was received for the Orissa High Court, police evacuated the HC premises in Cuttack and conducted search operations using sniffer dogs, bomb disposal squads and additional personnel, while closely monitoring entry and exit points, officials said.
“No suspicious devices or items were found during the inspections,” a senior police official said.
Judges, lawyers and litigants had vacated the premises, allowing authorities to carry out thorough searches. Cyber experts were also engaged to trace the origin of the threat emails.
Leader of Opposition and BJD president Naveen Patnaik also expressed concern over the threat e-mails.
“The safety of our judicial institutions, including judges, lawyers, litigants, court staff, and the general public, is of utmost priority. I urge the authorities concerned to conduct a swift, thorough, and appropriate investigation into the matter,” Patnaik said in a social media post.
He said, “Immediately identify from where the threats originated and who is involved in this, and bring the conclusion to the public domain. In such a situation, I call upon the general public to remain calm, stay away from spreading rumors, and extend full cooperation to the security agencies.” BJD spokesperson Lenin Mohanty criticised the state government, saying, “The home department is completely paralysed in the state and an atmosphere of fear prevails in various courts, which is unprecedented in Odisha. The state government had earlier ignored such threatening e-mails received by journalists.” PTI AAM RG AAM MNB
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