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Midnight mystery: Alarm at Delhi airport
IT HAPPENED HERE: Security officials at Gate No.4 of Delhi airport on Friday shortly after gunshot-like sounds were heard in the early hours of the day, sparking panic and alarm.
NEW DELHI: Loud reports similar to gunshots heard outside the departure lounge of Indira Gandhi International Airport here set off panic among passengers and disrupted flight operations briefly in the early hours of Friday.
Soon after the “gunshots” were heard around 1 a.m., Central Industrial Security Force and Delhi Police personnel took pre-determined positions and closed access to and from the international terminal. “Our men and some passengers heard two sounds similar to gunshots from the direction of the exit way of the departure lounge. We rushed to the area and our team along with Delhi Police personnel conducted rounds. Neither bullet marks nor empties were found,” said a senior CISF official later on Friday.
To add to the mystery, there were no eyewitnesses to the reported incident.
As a precautionary measure, the CISF personnel asked the passengers and staff inside the terminal building to lie down on the floor for about 15 minutes. Those getting off vehicles were quickly rushed inside the terminal.
CISF officials denied reports that occupants of a Qualis van had fired shots.
“After the sounds were heard, we were checking all cars coming to and going from the international terminal. One particular Qualis jumped the queue and sped away. Our jeep did chase the vehicle but lost track. There was only one man in the Qualis. We could not see the registration number, but some civilians said it had a Haryana number,” they added.
While the terminal’s parking lot was being checked, the CISF team recovered some crackers from a car, which were handed over to the Delhi Police. According to the Bureau of Civil Aviation Security, there was no veracity in the reports about firing.
Operations at Terminal 2 were disrupted for about an hour as the security agencies combed the area to assess the threat. During this period, some flights were delayed because of security checks. Inside the terminal, one panicky passenger climbed on to the baggage conveyor belt. She was received by a CISF official at the other end of the conveyor.
Security arrangements are under constant review through the combined participation of CISF, Delhi Police and Delhi International Airport Limited (DIAL), the operator of the IGI Airport.
Senior Delhi Police and CISF officers visited the airport later in the day to take stock of the situation.
“Travel through Delhi airport remains safe for passengers. Travellers are advised to allow extra time for security checks as the IGI Airport remains on high alert,” said a DIAL official.
Security at the Airport had been stepped up on Thursday following reports that terrorists might carry out an aerial attack or hijack an aircraft. Earlier the authorities had received an anonymous e-mail threatening to blow up the airport.
Following Friday’s scare, CISF snipers have taken positions outside the departure lounge of the Terminal 2.
“An enquiry into the incident is being done by all agencies concerned to ascertain if at all there was a miss. The Delhi Police are also investigating to verify whether any suspicious vehicle did exist as was reported,” said an official release.
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