Centre Criticizes X for 'Abetting Crime' Following 100 Bomb Threats on Flights

The IT ministry on Wednesday came down heavily on the social media platform run by Elon Musk, X after more than 100 bomb threats were received by airlines over the last few days and many of these hoaxes were circulated through various social media platforms.

According to IT Ministry officials, the situation amounts to "X abetting crime" as they continued questioning representatives of airlines and social media platforms like X and Meta on the steps taken to stop such alarming rumours from spreading.
The virtual meeting was reportedly chaired by Joint Secretary, IT, Sanket S Bhondve.

Online threats created panic among the passengers and set off alarm bells for security agencies. Several flights, including internationals, have been diverted after the hoax calls. So far, more than 120 flights operated by Indian carriers have received bomb threats over the past few days. On Tuesday, 30 flights operated by IndiGo, Vistara and Air India received such threats.

Union civil aviation minister K Rammohan Naidu said on Monday that it would take strict action, including putting the culprits on a no-fly list, against those who are spreading such hoax threats. The government is to amend the 'Suppression of Unlawful Acts' against the 'Safety of Civil Aviation Act' so that action could be initiated for offenses when an aircraft is on the ground.
Most of the aviation security norms currently cover in-flight offenses.

"We are trying to make amendments and the legal team has worked on it. We need consultations with other ministries also. We are definitely 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 a cognisable offence," the minister said.

The hoax calls apart, the airlines were strictly following SOPs in dealing with the passengers. Last week, an Air India flight from Mumbai to New York was diverted mid-air to Delhi after a bomb threat.