Bangalore: Delhi Police detains three HAL staffers

Bangalore, Oct 3: The Delhi police are checking if SIMI has infiltrated into defence hub HAL, with three of its employees - believed to be part of a terr
or outfit - planning serial blasts on Ramzan eve in Bangalore and during the ongoing Dasara celebrations in Mysore.

One of the three detained is an officer with the Aircraft Research and Development Centre (ARDC). The other two are ground-level staff with the HAL Helicopter Division. A fourth person was reportedly picked up from Udupi. Intelligence sources said the officer, working with HAL for three years, was identified by a Hubli medico, Asasulla Basha, who was arrested at Honnali. A raid on the officer's house yielded a large number of CDs and money. The officer reportedly collected details of sensitive installations in Bangalore; he transferred to SIMI documents on ARDC's activities. The IB tipped off the Delhi police, who began interrogating him, sources said.

He ran into the police when he applied for motor vehicle inspector's post. During background checks, the HAL police grew suspicious. The state intelligence has been verifying his details since then. One of these three employees is said to be close to Afzal Usman, arrested for stealing cars in Mumbai and exploding them with terror cargo in Ahmedabad on July 26.

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