The state capital, which was in the terrorists’ radar since the Godhra incident in Gujarat, has been a beehive of sleeper cells of the ISI-aided Lakshkar-e-Toiba and also budding outfits such as Hizb-ul-Mujahideen and Ikhwan-ul- Musalmeen.
Hyderabad City Police Commissioner A K Khan on Thursday told the media of the all-out security measures taken to ensure peaceful conduction of the Mahankali Bonalu festival slated for Sunday in Secundarabad.
Ahead of the Mumbai police alert, the anti-sabotage wings of the city Task Force had begun checking local hotels and guest houses. All vehicles coming to Hyderabad from Bangalore and Sholapur, Pune and Nagpur were also being checked.
Based on intelligence reports, security has been beefed up in major public places and religious locations all over the state, particularly in Hyderabad, the commissioner said.
“We have deployed the anti-terrorist unit of ‘Octopus’ at crucial junctions in the city toward off any attempts of terrorist attack,” he said.
Task Force sleuths intensified checking at Central Bus stand and at railway stations in Nampally and Secunderabad and also key locations in Hyderabad. Three major blasts, including one at Mecca Masjid on May 18, 2007, and two explosions at Lumbini Park and Gokul chat (an eatery) on August 25 the same year, had claimed the lives of more than 50 people and left hundreds injured.
Few years ago bombs were found at Secunderabad railway booking counter and also at Madina eduction centre in Nampally. A human bomb had damaged a police office in Begumpet near the chief ministers office in 2006. In 2009, some assailants had shot at police constables on patrol in old city.
DGP Dinesh Reddy, who was on an official tour to Delhi, rushed back to city to monitor and supervise the security arrangements. He reviewed overall situation via teleconference with district SPs and police commissioners of Vijayawada and Visakhapatnam.
Chief Minister Kiran Kumar Reddy also reviewed the situation with DGP Dinesh Reddy, Intelligence Chief Mahender Reddy and Hyderabad City Police Commissioner A K Khan and advised them to leave no stone unturned in tackling terrorist threat.