Threat of hijack at IG airport

Twenty-seven persons who were to catch flights to Dubai were detained with fake visas at the international terminal of New Delhi’s Indira Gandhi International Airport on Tuesday evening after a call was made to the call centres of two airlines that two groups of Bangladeshis would try to hijack aircraft from Delhi.

According to airport sources, of the 27 persons, 12 were to board a Kingfisher flight to Dubai while the other 15 were to board a Jet Airways flight to Dubai. On Tuesday afternoon, a call was made to a Kingfisher call centre at Pune that a group of 12 persons would board the aircraft to Dubai from Delhi with fake documents and would try to hijack the aircraft. The Jet call centre at Delhi also received a similar call about 15 passengers.

Security agencies then went on high alert. The group of 27 persons were identified on arrival at the airport. Once inside, their documents were checked and they were found to be carrying fake visas. Airline officials suspect that the incident was a fake visa racket and that one of the disgruntled touts could have tipped off the authorities.