Andheri man makes hoax threat call ahead of Modi’s rally in Shivaji Park, arrested

MUMBAI: A 52-year-old unemployed man was arrested from Andheri on Saturday after he called the Mumbai police control room and warned the operator that a ‘major incident’ was likely to happen at Narendra Modi’s election rally in Shivaji Park, Dadar on Friday.

The police said the man, identified as Kannappa S Somsundaram Reddy, used to run a hotel earlier but after the pandemic, he lost his business and has been unemployed since then. The police were told that he used to watch news channels throughout the day. On Friday, Reddy was watching the pre-coverage news of Modi’s rally in Dadar and he observed that Shivaji Park was too crowded which might result in a major incident and therefore security should be beefed up. Chief minister Eknath Shinde, his deputies Devendra Fadnavis and Ajit Pawar and MNS chief Raj Thackeray were among the VVIPs present at the event. Around 3pm, a few hours before Modi’s event, Reddy made the anonymous call to the control room.

“The called first warned of an untoward incident at the rally and then he advised that the security at the venue should be beefed up. As per the Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) the information was shared with all the police units and senior officers of the Mumbai police who reviewed the security arrangements and efforts were made to get more information from the caller who had stopped answering their calls, making the police suspicious,” said the police officer.

“We then started tracing the caller and arrested him from a chawl at Mhatar Pada Road in Andheri which he had rented. While Reddy was sitting at home watching news channels, his wife started working after the pandemic and provided for the family,” said the police officer.

“We have arrested Reddy and booked him under sections 505(1)(B) (statements conducing to public mischief), 505(2) (statements creating or promoting enmity, hatred or ill-will between classes) and 182 (giving false information to a public servant in order to cause him to use his lawful power to the injury or annoyance of any person) of the Indian Penal Code,” said the police officer.

“We produced him before the court that granted his two days police custody remand,” said the police officer.