Police sources said the airport had received three bomb blast threats over time, but this was the first time a hijack was threatened.
Published Oct 09, 2023 | 11:19 PM ⚊ Updated Oct 09, 2023 | 11:21 PM
File photo of the Hyderabad airport. (Official website)
A Dubai-bound flight from Hyderabad was cancelled on Sunday, 8 October, and three people scheduled to travel on it were detained after an email — which the authorities later said was a hoax — claimed that one of the trio had terrorist connections.
The person named in the email — and subsequently detained — has been identified as Thirupathi Baadineni.
The other two people who were detained were identified as L Vinod Kumar and P Rakesh Kumar. They were said to be accompanying Thirupathi.
The flight was cancelled, and alternative arrangements were made for the remaining 111 passengers to travel to Dubai.
Sub-Inspector (SI) B Suman, posted at the Rajiv Gandhi International Airport (RGIA) in Hyderabad, told South First that the email claimed that Thirupathi was an informer for the ISI — Pakistan’s spy agency — and intended to hijack the Air India flight.
Based on the complaint, the police registered an FIR under Sections 385 (committing extortion, putting any person in fear, or attempting to put any person in fear) and 506 (punishment for criminal intimidation) of the Indian Penal Code.
A copy of the FIR was accessed by South First, confirming the sections.
He, however, added that a preliminary investigation found that the email was a hoax. However, the trio would remain detained until all aspects of the investigations were over.
According to the RGIA’s Airport Operations Control Centre (AOCC), the email was received at 7.37 pm on Sunday.
RGIA Chief Security Officer (CSO) BSN Reddi told South First that the Bomb Threat Assessment Committee (BTAC) was convened to assess the message.
The committee assessed the nature of the threat as “specific” after due consideration of all of its aspects, he added. It was only then that Thirupathi and the two people accompanying him were arrested, said Reddi.
Meanwhile, according to the SI, the airport had received three threats of bomb blasts over time, but this was the first threat hijack.
