[OneIndia] Amritsar has been put on high-alert following a call to the police stating multiple bombs have been planted near the Golden Temple.
Following the call, the police sprung into action and launched a massive search operation. The police however did not find any explosives.
Naunihal Singh, the Commisioner of Police, Amritsar, said that they had launched a search operation but did not find anything. He also said that it appeared to be a hoax call. He also added that the police had arrested one person and an FIR has been registered against him.
The Commissioner also added that the police are actively conducting an investigation to ascertain the motive behind the threat.
Sources said that the arrested person was in the attitire of a Nihang.
Nihang are traditional Sikh warriors — they wear blue robes, carry swords and spears, and have steel quoits on their turbans — apparently both as decoration and as a weapon.
They also indicated that he had used a stolen mobile phone to make the call. The police traced him thorough the location from his mobile phone.
Punjab has been on high-alert for quite sometime since the emergence of the Khalistan radicals. Recently three low-intensity blasts had taken place nearly the Golden Temple between May 6 and 11.
It should also be noted that security arrangements are at an all time high in Amritsar due to the impending 39th anniversary of Operation Bluster.There has also been a provocative rhetoric by organizations such as the proscribed Sikhs For Justice. A call for a shutdown has also been made by the Dal Khalsa.
From the farmer protests a few years ago, we see the Nihang in their everyday form, as opposed to showing off at festivals:
