Andhra Pradesh

Airport incident: police rule out terror threat

HYDERABAD: An attempt by four persons to enter the Rajiv Gandhi International Airport in Begumpet on Tuesday sent security personnel and airport staff into a tizzy. The police, however, ruled out any terror threat associated with the incident.

Clad in olive green dress, the foursome tried to sneak into airport from the main gate of Indian Airlines office at Rasoolpura. Even before a jawan of the Central Industrial Security Force (CISF), which supervises the security of airport, could stop them, they fled in their silver Maruti Esteem car that bore a Punjab registration number.

The incident left officials baffled as the Intelligence Bureau (IB) had already alerted the city police on suspected suicide bombers planning to strike at vital installations and religious places. Senior police officials from the city and State went to the airport to take stock of the situation.

Minutes after the ‘strangers’ crossed the main gate, they asked the CISF jawan about the route to the airport. When the jawan told them that they were on the wrong way, they immediately backed up and sped away, said Begumpet Inspector J. Subbarami Reddy.

However, the question as to why they wanted to enter the airport from Rasoolpura side instead of the main road raised the suspicion. Their car had number plate on the front side only. They were not carrying weapons and sported an ‘EME’ tag on their olive green shirts.

Airport Director R. K. Singla on Wednesday said they may have lost their way. “It looks as if they had no intention to create trouble,” he said, adding that the CISF officials have submitted a report on Tuesday’s incident.

Mr. Singla said security has been beefed up in the wake of enhanced threat perception in the twin cities ever since the twin blasts took place.

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