Ahmedabad: After schools and courts, Regional Transport Offices (RTOs) in four major cities Ahmedabad, Rajkot, Vadodara, and Surat became the latest targets of ‘hoax’ bomb threat emails. Bhuj RTO in Kutch also received a similar threat.

According to officials, the threats were sent to the official email IDs of the respective RTO offices on April 6, 2026, prompting an immediate response from police and security agencies.

Operations Suspended, Thousands Turned Away

As a precautionary measure, all operations at RTO offices in the four cities were suspended with immediate effect. Driving licence track tests were also halted, forcing thousands of applicants to return without completing their scheduled procedures.

Eyewitnesses reported scenes of chaos as applicants and staff were evacuated. Authorities, however, managed to safely shift people to secure locations.

Following the alert, police teams, bomb disposal squads, and dog squads were deployed across all four cities. Comprehensive searches were carried out across RTO premises, including office departments and parked vehicles.

In Ahmedabad, officials said the threat email was received at around 12:50 pm, claiming that 13 bombs had been planted inside the RTO premises. As the Ahmedabad RTO currently operates from a private multi-storey building, police evacuated the entire premises and launched a thorough search operation.

In Surat, a detailed inspection was conducted at the RTO office in Pal. However, no suspicious objects have been found so far, officials confirmed.

Series of Threats Raises Concern

Authorities noted that similar threats have been reported in recent weeks. On March 12, 2026, the Ahmedabad Metropolitan Court, and on March 9, 2026, the Gujarat High Court, received bomb threats via email. Earlier, the passport office and post office were also targeted.

With a pattern of such hoax threats emerging, Gujarat Police remains on high alert. DeshGujarat