Taj Mahal evacuated after man phoned cops, said the bomb will go off soon

Over 1,000 tourists at the Taj Mahal were asked to leave the premises on Thursday after authorities received a bomb threat which later proved to be a hoax call. After being briefly closed, the monument again allowed tourists at around 11.15am. No explosive was found during the searches, ADG Agra Zone Rajeev Krishna confirmed.

The threat call, which was received in the morning hours, sent authorities into a tizzy. A bomb disposal squad rushed to the spot and checking began. The western and the eastern gates of the monument were immediately closed and the tourists were asked to move out.

"We have received information from the control room that a man called them up saying that a bomb is kept at the Taj Mahal which will explode soon. The security check is being done around Taj Mahal," Shiv Ram Yadav, SP (Protocol) Agra said, adding that the man also claimed that he was discriminated against in military recruitment.

The CISF was alerted, Agra SP said.

Agra Police have also disclosed the number from where the call came. The call has been traced to Firozabad.

"The call came on UP 112. He said there is a bomb planted at the premises of the Taj Mahal. Immediately, we pressed our teams into action. No explosive has been found yet. We are also trying to trace the caller," Agra inspector-general (IGA Satish Ganesh said.

"There are 99 per cent chances that this is a hoax call. But we are following the drill. According to CISF inputs, we will be able to reopen the monument for tourists in another hour. There is no need to panic," the IG added.