It was exactly 5:42 pm on Tuesday, when the police control room in Chennai received an alarming call. An unidentified man, a resident of the city, told the police that he overheard is wife talking to strange people on the phone and alleged that she was planning to plant bombs at the Chennai Central Railway Station. He even went on to claim that they will explode on Wednesday. The caller then disconnected the line, offering no more details
The city police immediately alerted the station and all necessary precautions were taken at the venue to avoid any untoward incident. But at the same time, efforts were underway to track the caller and his 'bomber' wife. Police found that the call was made by 37-year-old Saravanan who lives with his wife Malarvizhi. They immediately brought him into the Teynampet station for enquiry. But what began as a situation of concern soon became a source of irritation for the police.
"It turns out that he and his wife were having some kind of domestic dispute. So, in order to punish her, he called and lied that she was going to plant bombs in the station," explains Inspector Ramesh, the investigating officer in the case. "For a problem between the both of them, he was ruining public tranquility," he adds.
According to the police, Saravanan was in fact drunk when he called the police station. The police, however, did not take the matter lightly. Even as they secured Chennai Central station, the Teynampet police tracked down the caller using the mobile number recorded on the caller ID.
And pretty soon, what was supposed to be a plan to trap his wife and get her into trouble, landed Saravanan himself in jail.
"We have already remanded him and booked a case," confirms the inspector. "To make such a call at a time like this is unacceptable," he adds, referring to the ongoing tensions between India and Pakistan at the border following a terror attack by the Jaish-e-Mohammad on February 14, which left 40 CRPF personnel dead.