On Monday, Civil Aviation Minister K. Rammohan Naidu announced plans to propose life imprisonment for individuals making hoax calls or posting false information on social media, as part of an amendment to aviation security rules. The proposal also includes placing such offenders on the no-fly list.
Naidu confirmed that changes are being drafted to both the aviation security regulations and the Suppression of Unlawful Acts Against Safety of Civil Aviation Act, 1982. He emphasized that the central government is taking legislative steps to address recent bomb threats targeting airlines, which have caused significant disruption for airport authorities, carriers, and passengers.
“We have an existing act from the 1980s, but it needs to address offences both on the ground and at airports,” said Civil Aviation Minister Naidu, noting that the Bureau of Civil Aviation Security (BCAS) is in constant communication with the home ministry regarding the ongoing bomb threats to flights.
Under Section 3 of the current law, life imprisonment and fines are imposed for any communication made “onboard” that disrupts flight operations. The Ministry of Civil Aviation is now proposing to extend these penalties, making disruptions originating from the ground also punishable by life imprisonment.

CNN-News18 had exclusively reported that the central government is proposing an amendment to the law to combat the growing problem of hoax calls, which have impacted at least 100 flights across various airlines, all of which turned out to be false alarms.
When asked about a possible terror angle, Civil Aviation Minister K. Rammohan Naidu declined to comment, stating that there is no point in speculating without a thorough investigation. “This will be classified as a cognizable offence with strict punishments and penalties, and we want to implement it as soon as possible. The Ministry of Civil Aviation (MoCA) has already submitted its inputs to other ministries for consultation,” he said.
He further emphasized, “This has been happening over the past week. I want to assure people that whenever there is a threat, we strictly follow a protocol aligned with international guidelines.”
According to sources, Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) Director General RS Bhatti and Bureau of Civil Aviation Security (BCAS) chief General Zulfiquar Hasan recently met with Union Home Secretary Govind Mohan to brief him on the recent hoax calls targeting both domestic and international flights.
Earlier in the day, the Ministry of Civil Aviation (MoCA) stated that it is actively seeking “serious solutions” to address the growing issue of bomb hoax threats. “This matter is being taken very seriously by the aviation regulator, and they are working towards identifying effective solutions,” said Asangba Chuba Ao, Joint Secretary of the ministry.
On Sunday, October 20 alone, 25 flights were hit with bomb threats, causing significant disruption for hundreds of passengers. Authorities were forced to move several planes to isolation bays at affected airports for thorough inspections. According to sources, six flights each from IndiGo, Vistara, Air India, and Akasa Air, along with at least one flight from Air India Express, received these threats. A social media account on platform X, which had issued some of these bomb threats, was subsequently blocked.
Source: News18
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