Uttar Pradesh police have arrested a Class XI student from Purnea district of Bihar for allegedly threatening to bomb the Maha Kumbh Mela in Allahabad, which will begin on January 13.

The accused had created a fake social media account in the name of Nasar Pathan and threatened to "kill 1,000 Hindus".

A team from the Uttar Pradesh police conducted a raid on the basis of technical surveillance on Saturday evening and arrested the accused, a minor, with the help of the local police. The arrest was made in the Shaheedganj panchayat area under Bhawanipur police station. He has been taken to Allahabad for further questioning.

“The Uttar Pradesh police have taken a teenage boy into custody in connection with an alleged threat to the Maha Kumbh Mela and taken him to Allahabad. We are gathering further information about him and the incident,” Purnea superintendent of police Kartikeya Sharma told reporters.

Sources in the police said the arrested teenager hailed from a Hindu family, but had created a fake identity in the name of Nasar Pathan on Instagram to implicate a friend with whom he had had a fight.

The threat message was posted on December 31. As it went viral on social media, the police in Uttar Pradesh swung into action and registered an FIR at Kotwali police station in Allahabad. A dedicated team of officers started tracing the origin and IP address of the Instagram post.

The accused, getting whiff of the police activities, fled to Nepal, which shares a border with Purnea, for a couple of days. As soon as he returned to his native place, the police team investigating the matter took him into custody.

The Maha Kumbh, held every 12 years, will continue till February 26. The Uttar Pradesh government is expecting around 40 crore visitors.