Staff Correspondent
Port Blair, Aug 01: Claims of an active mobile phone and status update on a social media chat application, IMO, of Raghubir Verma has further deepened the mystery of the Indian Air Force AN-32 which went missing during its flight from Tambaram in Tamil Nadu to Port Blair on July 22 this year.
The family members of Airman Raghubir Verma, who was on board the ill-fated aircraft, claimed 8 days after the incident that they found his mobile phone ringing on more than one occasion.
“Even the social media chat application IMO installed on his mobile phone showed a status update in the morning on July 26. We believe he will be back soon,” said the family members.
Cyber experts have, however, expressed reservations over the claims even as they prayed for the safe return of all the crew and defence personnel on board AN-32, which considered to be one of the safest carrier-cum-cargo aircraft ever since it was inducted in service of the armed forces between 1984 and 1991.
Speaking to Andaman Sheekha, Sub Inspector of the Cyber Cell of Andaman and Nicobar Police, Mr Sahil Samsuddin said that such phone rings are common phenomenon when a mobile phone remains switched off for several days and several persons keep on dialling the same number.
In this case, his family members, relatives and friends are continuously dialling the number desperate to know about his whereabouts since July 22.
In such situation, the last mobile phone tower, Raghubir Verma was connected with (in this case Tambaram), may have transmitted such false phone rings.
Such rings are not continuous and rings for once or twice, he said adding that this is probably the case of ‘call jump’.
He said that call details of Raghubir Verma however shows that the number did not receive any call after 8.00 am of 22nd July 2016.
On the status update on social media chat application, when contacted an expert in this field claimed that the update may be case of hacking of the social media account of the Airman.
“Several officials from various intelligence and investigating agencies must be hunting for clues from the email and social media accounts of each and every person onboard AN-32 since it went missing on June 22. There’s possibility that some investigating agency might have cracked the password of the social media account of Raghubir Verma because of which the status update as appeared,” he said.
Meanwhile, all family members and all Islanders are still praying for the safe return of Airman Raghubir Verma and all those people who were onboard the Aircraft AN-32.
