Bihar man threatens PM using 71-year-old uncle’s number, arrested: Police

According to police sources, the Prime Minister’s Office received a WhatsApp call threatening harm on PM Modi during his Bihar visit, prompting immediate action by central security agencies, including the National Investigation Agency (NIA), the Intelligence Bureau (IB) and the Ministry of Home Affairs.

Bhagalpur Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Hriday Kant on Friday said that as soon as central agencies alerted Bhagalpur police, a swift investigation was launched by a special team led by Deputy Superintendent of Police (Law & Order) Chandra Bhushan, and comprising officers from the technical cell and the Sultanganj police station.

“Technical analysis revealed that the number had been activated 71 times using a virtual private network (VPN). The team subsequently traced a mobile number registered in the name of Mantu Chaudhary, a 71-year-old resident of Sultanganj,” the officer said.

SSP Kant further informed that during questioning, Chaudhary, who described himself as a non-matriculate farmer using a basic keypad phone, “denied any involvement and alleged that he was being framed by his nephew, Sameer Kumar Ranjan”.

Further investigation and digital forensics led the police to Ranjan, a resident of Maheshi village in Sultanganj and a BCA graduate who had been unemployed since the Covid-19 pandemic.

“During interrogation, he (Sameer Ranjan) confessed to the crime and has been formally arrested. The accused used VPN to mask his identity and sent the threat via WhatsApp call,” said Kant.

The SSP also said police learnt during the primary investigation that the accused has an “ongoing land dispute with his uncle” and had issued the threat with an intention to implicate Mantu Chaudhary.

Police had recovered the mobile phone used in the incident, and are further investigating the case. Chaudhary has been released, police said.

PM Modi is in Rohtas district on Friday as part of his two-day visit to Bihar that began on Thursday.