Mumbai on high alert after WhatsApp terror hoax, Noida man arrested

Mumbai police went on high alert on Friday after their traffic control room received a WhatsApp message claiming that 14 foreign terrorists had entered the city and that 34 vehicles containing human bombs and about 400 kilograms of RDX had been planted to coincide with Anant Chaturdashi, the final day of the Ganesh festival. Authorities said the message, signed with the name of an organisation calling itself LashkareJihadi, warned of blasts that would "shake the country" as lakhs of devotees prepare for visarjan processions.

Within hours, police traced the message to Noida and arrested a 51 year old man identified as Ashwini Kumar, who officials said lives in Noida but is originally from Patliputra in Bihar. Noida police detained him in the early hours of Saturday and handed him over to Mumbai investigators. Reports gave slightly different locations for the arrest in Noida; police statements cited both Sector 79 and Sector 113 in initial briefings. Authorities recovered multiple mobile phones, SIM cards and digital storage devices from the suspect, a police officer said.

Mumbai's Crime Branch, working with the Anti Terrorism Squad and other agencies, launched a probe immediately...