The Uttar Pradesh Police’s Anti-Terrorism Squad on Tuesday launched an operation to track a suspected militant holed up in a bungalow in Lucknow’s Thakurganj locality. The suspect is believed to be part of the group behind the explosion that took place aboard the Bhopal-Ujjain passenger train earlier on Tuesday.
Additional Director General of Police Daljit Chaudhary told ANI that they had been tipped off in the morning about the presence of a few suspects in Kanpur and Lucknow. Senior officers began search operations on the basis of the inputs, he added. “One suspect was arrested in Kanpur,” he said.
While there were conflicting reports on the number earlier, the inspector general of the ATS unit confirmed that they were hunting for only one suspect. He said they were using chilli bombs “to arrest him alive”. “The suspect has weapons with him, but he is alone there. He is firing intermittently,” the officer said, adding that they had conducted raids in Thakurganj after receiving the tip off.
The IG added that they had “time on their side” and were in no hurry to capture him as he was alone and had no hostages with him either. He added that they had stopped firing at the building. “The moment we knocked at the door, the suspect locked the room, and we heard the sound of the cocking of a gun,” he added.
At least 20 commandos are at the site in Lucknow. The Home Affairs Ministry and National Investigation Agency are monitoring the developments.
At least eight people were injured in the blast on the Bhopal-Ujjain passenger train. The police had not ruled out the possibility of a bomb planted in a suitcase.
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