Two policemen from Tamil Nadu were injured in an exchange of fire with terrorists who were hiding in a residential area in Puttur town on the Andhra Pradesh - Tamil Nadu border.
The two terrorists were taken into custody after an 11-hour joint commando operation by the Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu police, including the Octopus personnel.
Acting on an intelligence input that some suspected terrorists were hiding in a residential area, the Tamil Nadu police launched search operations in Puttur, located nearly 30 km from the temple town of Tirupati. They reportedly came to the town to conduct a recce, and rented the house about a month ago.
According to reports, the militants initially showed resistance and openly fired, injuring two policemen. However, the police fired stun and smoke bombs to flush them out. One terrorist was also injured in the operation, and was later taken to a hospital.
As many as six people, including three children, were taken into custody after the commando operation. The police also recovered one revolver and two bombs from a house.
The terrorists are suspected to be Bilal and Munna of the terror outfit Al-Umar, police sources said.
Sources say that the police got a tip-off about the hideout during investigations into the murder of BJP leader V Ramesh in Salem and other leaders. The Tamil Nadu police have also arrested Fakruddin, who was wanted in a case of planting a "pipe bomb" in Madurai during BJP leader L K Advani's tour. (INN)