Bomb scare leads to panic at BJP HQ

On a day when the BJP named its new president, a bomb scare rocked the party headquarters in central Delhi’s Ashoka Road where three unclaimed bags sent security agencies into a tizzy on Wednesday morning.

A bomb squad and sniffer dogs of Delhi Police rushed to the premises around 8 am over suspicion of a terror threat, leading to anxious moments. Soon, however, a couple came to the spot to claim the bags and told police that they had gone for breakfast at nearby Andhra Bhavan’s canteen. 

“The owners of the bags reclaimed them when they returned after a quick bite at the Andhra Bhavan’s canteen,” said a police officer. Earlier, police took 35-year-old Sujeet Narayan Goswami and his wife to Parliament Street station for interrogation.

Sources said the couple were also questioned by Intelligence Bureau officials and Delhi Police’s Special Cell. Sujeet hails from Uttarakhand and his wife is from Andhra Pradesh. They told police that they used to stay at a rented house in south Delhi’s Chhatarpur, but were forced to vacate the house by the landlord on Wednesday.

“They had failed to pay the rent for the past two months and had been previously warned by their landlord. When they could not arrange the money, they were forced to vacate the house on Wednesday,” the officer added.

The couple then decided to seek shelter at an ashram in central Delhi’s Sardar Patel Marg, but were not sure about the address. Sujeet told police that they took an auto-rickshaw to Sardar Patel Marg and saw the BJP headquarters on the way at about 7:30 am.

“They thought about meeting BJP leaders to seek daily-wage jobs, but the office was shut at that time,” the officer said. The couple found out from locals that they could have breakfast at nearby Andhra Bhavan’s canteen, so they left the bags outside the BJP headquarters and went to get food. “As nothing suspicious was recovered from the bags, the couple were allowed to leave after interrogation. ” the officer added.