Delhi Hoax Bomb Mails: 'Atishi's Parents Worked to Save Afzal', BJP-AAP at Loggerheads as Police Reveal NGO Link

New Delhi: The Delhi Police claimed on Tuesday that a Class-12 student, who was recently apprehended for allegedly sending bomb threats to more than 400 city schools, is linked to an NGO that supports a political party.  

A police officer further said that during the investigation, they also got to know that the NGO had voiced support for Parliament attack convict Afzal Guru.

"We were tracking e-mails and because of a virtual private network (VPN), it was difficult to track the origins. We also had to ascertain whether there was a terror angle to it," Special Commissioner of Police (Law and Oder) Madhup Tewari told a press conference at the police headquarters here.

He added that service providers were not able to help police because of the use of the VPN.

"Our teams tracked the minor after recent e-mails on January 8. As the e-mail sender was a juvenile, the team took his laptop and mobile phone for a forensic examination," the officer said.

Police teams tracked 400 threat e-mails sent by the minor. They also checked the background of his father, who has been working with an NGO, and found out that the organisation is part of a civil society group that has been raising issues regarding the hanging of Afzal Guru and is also helping a political party.

Without naming the political party, the officer said the teams are further investigating the matter.

BJP vs AAP - Blame Game Begins

The Delhi Police, while refraining from naming any political party in connection with the hoax bomb threats, indirectly sparked a political war of words. Soon after the police statement, the BJP, in a media briefing, accused the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) of being linked to the incident.

BJP leader Sudhanshu Trivedi intensified the attack, alleging, "Atishi's parents worked to save Afzal Guru. Did AAP or any NGO associated with them have any connection with this [hoax bomb threats]?"

The AAP, however, hit back strongly. Addressing a press conference, AAP leader Sanjay Singh lambasted the BJP's accusations, saying, "I want to ask BJP when did they get inducted into the Delhi Police? You are trying to gain political advantage out of bomb threats to little children. Aren't you ashamed?" 

The hoax emails, which first surfaced on February 12, 2024, persisted intermittently until January 8, 2025. A breakthrough in the investigation was made following a forensic examination of the child’s laptop, which uncovered over 400 emails. 

Authorities are now probing the potential use of the dark web and advanced technology to facilitate the transmission of these emails.