3 hours at Tis Hazari: threat turns hoax, raises court alert

The Tis Hazari courts had to deal with a different case on Thursday morning. At 9.12 am, an anonymous call at the Subzi Mandi police post warned that six militants had entered the court complex posing as lawyers and would blow up the district court complex.

No sooner had the news been communicated that a large possé of police personnel and a bomb detection squad reached the court premises. Policemen were deployed at all gates to cordon off the area, evacuate people, and keep a vigil on activities inside the court complex.

Appeals were made to the lawyers and litigants to vacate the premises with the information that all hearings had been adjourned and the courts would not function further for the day. Soon, the bomb detention squad members got down to business: teamed with sniffer dogs, they extensively searched the courtrooms, judges’ chambers, the central hall and other offices.

The search was completed at 12.50 pm, when Deputy Commissioner of Police (North) Sagarpreet Hooda announced it was a hoax call. “The call was only to create panic,” Hooda said. “We are trying to trace the caller.”

Hooda later conducted a meeting with the three district judges of Tis Hazari to review security arrangements in the court complex.

Lawyers see glimmer of hope in hoax call
As the terror threat was announced to be a hoax, most lawyers saw it as a “wake-up call”: the security arrangements, which they said have many flaws, might improve in the aftermath. Newsline spoke with lawyers on the issue:

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