PATNA: Bihar has been placed on the high security alert after intelligence inputs suggested that three Pakistani terrorists linked to Jaish-e-Mohammed slipped into the state through the porous India-Nepal border.
Police have released their photographs and passport details and announced a reward of Rs 50,000 for information leading to their capture.
The alert coincides with Congress leader Rahul Gandhi's ongoing 'Voter Adhikar Yatra', which in recent days has traversed several districts along the frontier, prompting major changes to his security arrangements.
Gandhi, who had been travelling in an open jeep to greet supporters, was on Thursday seen seated inside a closed vehicle and moving at speed through towns and villages.
His roadshow in Sitamarhi was cancelled at the last moment and his convoy did not halt at several welcome stages that had been prepared along the route.
The suspects, identified as Hasnain Ali of Rawalpindi, Adil Hussain of Umerkot and Mohammad Usman of Bahawalpur, are believed to have arrived in Kathmandu in the second week of Aug before crossing into Bihar last week, possibly through Araria.
Security agencies have been directed to step up vehicle checking, surveillance and intelligence gathering in all seven border districts, including Sitamarhi, Madhubani, West Champaran, Araria, Kishanganj and Supaul.
Additional director general of police (headquarters) Kundan Krishnan described the matter as "a very top-secret issue linked to national security" and declined to comment further, stressing that such intelligence inputs from central agencies should not have been made public.
SP: Vehicles being checked in border areas
However, East Champaran SP Swarn Prabhat released a video message confirming that his district police had been placed on high alert.
"We have received input from central agencies and based on it, the district police have been kept on high alert. Vehicle checking drives are under way in the border areas and all police stations have been alerted," he said, urging the public to provide any information through Dial-112 or directly to his office, assuring that informers' names would not be revealed.
He added that the reward of Rs 50,000 announced on each suspect would be given to those who provide actionable information.
The timing of the alert has cast a shadow over Gandhi's yatra, which he launched in Bihar to highlight alleged deletions in the electoral rolls. From Sitamarhi, he reached Motihari on Thursday, both close to the Nepal border. Witnesses said his convoy bypassed dense population areas instead of slowing for greetings with Gandhi waving briefly from inside a van rather than mingling with supporters.
Bihar's 729km border with Nepal, the longest stretch of any state along the 1,751km frontier, has long been considered vulnerable. Security is managed by the Sashastra Seema Bal (SSB), yet the open border allows easy crossings.
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