7 held in Tirumala for suspected terror links

TIRUPATI/ HYDERABAD: A group of seven youngsters, including five Muslim youth from West Bengal and Odisha, who were working in a hotel in Tirumala, were taken into custody by police on the suspicion that they could have terror links.Though nothing has been found to link them to terror groups so far, the seizure of 8 CDs containing some religious discourses, led to the suspicion as officials said it was ‘quite abnormal’ for someone to keep such CDs in Tirumala, which has been on the terror radar of various outfits including Lashkar-e-Taiba.Sources told Express that following information that Woodside hotel had employed child labour, a team of TTD Vigilance led by assistant vigilance security officer, Yugandhar carried out searches on the hotel. During the searches, the officials found eight CDs, two DVDs of Hindi movies, two butcher knives, said to be hidden in a trunk, liquor bottles and some ‘gutka’ sachets.With seizure of the CDs, one of which had been sent from Dubai and the other from Israel, the matter was informed to higher-ups and all seven persons taken into custody.