Taj Mahal briefly shut for tourists after hoax bomb call

The Taj Mahal was briefly shut for tourists on Thursday morning after Uttar Pradesh Police received a hoax call about a bomb at the heritage site in Agra. The police launched a search operation, which lasted for 30 minutes, before declaring it safe to restore entry.

“The call came around 9 am. We did not have to evacuate tourists that were there. The number of tourists was not that high because it was weekday. We stopped entry to the monument for around half an hour when the search was conducted along with a bomb disposal squad. No bomb was found, and now the situation is back to normal,” said Circle Officer (Sadar) Rajeev Kumar Singh, who was heading the police team that conducted the search along with CISF and ASI officials.

SP (Protocol) Shiv Ram Yadav informed that the caller also said that there are “irregularities” in the recruitment for the Army and that he was not selected.

“We received information through the control room that a person had made a call saying that he was calling from Loha mandir area and that there are issues with army recruitment, and that he was not recruited for it. He said that there is a bomb placed in the Taj Mahal which will explode soon. We have alerted CISF about this and a search operation was launched under the leadership of Circle Officer (Sadar),” said Yadav.

“The recruitment process for the Army is ongoing in Agra and we suspect he was talking about it. We will be able to comment on it after he is arrested and questioned,” added Yadav.

Agra SSP Babloo Kumar said that the information was received from a mobile number which has been traced to Firozabad district, which is around 50 km from Agra. “A team comprising CISF, ASI and civil police did a search operation with bomb disposal squad around the Taj Mahal. The number which made the call has been located in Firozabad. We have dispatched teams to arrest him, and during the search, the situation was found to be normal, and the entry to Taj Mahal has been restarted,” said Kumar.

The Taj was reopened for tourists last September with strict coronavirus safety guidelines after being shut for tourists for over six months. It has been closed since March 17 due to the pandemic.

According to ASI estimates, Taj Mahal receives around 70-80 lakh visitors each year, including a large number of foreign tourists who are not likely to come till regular international traffic resumes. The Agra Fort gets 30 lakh visitors a year.