Anti-terror operation in Thakurganj area of Lucknow ended after almost 12 hours in the wee hours of Wednesday, killing one terror suspect. Initially, police denied reports of two terror suspects being in a house in the outskirts of Lucknow.
“After opening the doors of the house (where the terrorist was holed up), the force went inside and found the suspect dead along with weapons,” additional director general of police (Law and Order) Daljit Chaudhary said as per a report in TOI.
“At one point of time it appeared that more than one person was holed up inside the house,” he added. The operation “stands closed now. Rest of the legal formalities will subsequently take place,” Chaudhary said.
The terror suspect was identified as Saifullah. He was a member of the ISIS Khorasan module, said IG ATS Aseem Arun. Saifullah was linked with the group that executed a blast in Bhopal-Ujjain train in Madhya Pradesh on Tuesday. The incident injured 10 passengers.
“Efforts were made to catch the suspected terrorist (identified as Saifullah) alive, but unfortunately this did not materialise. We fired tear gas shells and chilly bombs, so that he comes out. But, he did not come out,” Arun said.
The ATS commandos then stormed inside the house. “The suspected terrorist then fired at the ATS commandos, which was then appropriately retaliated by the ATS commandos. After this, two rooms were thoroughly searched and checked, and the person identified as Saifullah was found dead,” he added.
“One pistol, revolver, knife and ammunition have been recovered,” he said.
The commandos also noticed a wire wrapped around the stomach of the terror suspect. “We suspect that it could possibly be an explosive. Hence, the Bomb Disposal Squad has been called to clear the room first. After this the investigations would commence,” he said.
