Airports across India have been put on high alert after intelligence agencies warned of attempts by Pakistan-based terrorist organisations to hijack a flight with a view to securing the release of Mohammad Afzal Guru, who has been sentenced to death in the Parliament attack case. This is the fourth such high alert in airports in the last two months. In November 2006, security in India’s southern airports was tightened after a note was found at Trichy airport in Tamil Nadu warning of Al-Qaeda’s plans to target the aviation sector. This was immediately followed by another alert on November 13, 2006, after the United States Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) forwarded an e-mail to the Indian intelligence agencies warning of Al-Qaeda’s plans to target US-bound flights leaving India’s airports.
On December 9, 2006, another alert was sounded after an Intelligence Bureau (IB) note warned of plans by Pakistan-based terrorist outfits to release Afzal Guru – a sort of repeat of the Kandahar hijacking. In December 1999, the Delhi-bound flight IC-814 was hijacked by terrorists soon after it left Kathmandu, capital of Nepal, and was diverted to Kandahar in Afghanistan. The hostages were freed only after the hijackers’ demand to release the hardcore terrorists – including the present chief of Jaish-e-Mohammad, Maulana Masood Azhar – lodged in Indian jails, was met. Not taking any chances this time around, Indian security agencies quickly swung into action to beef up security checks at the country’s airports, including tighter screening of hand-baggage. Intelligence and security agencies have warned against fully relaxing the high state of alert at the country’s airports till the President of India decides on Afzal Guru’s mercy petition. The Bureau of Civil Aviation Security (BCAS) has written to the Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) to remain in a state of high alert and initiate additional security safeguards at airports across the country, particularly at the international airports in Delhi, India’s capital, and Mumbai. This would include tighter baggage screening, multi-point frisking of passengers and deployment of spotters to detect any suspicious activity. The IB alert at the country’s airports also followed the disclosure made by terrorist Bilal, arrested recently in Bangalore, about Lashker-e-Toiba’s plans to let loose terror at Indian airports. |
