Tirupati: A task force team was attacked by smugglers in Tirupati on Monday. When the task force tried to catch the smugglers near Hotel Sarovar Grand, nearly 100 smugglers attacked them with stones. The task force opened two rounds of fire in the air. An additional team was sent to the spot and started combing the area. Task Force IG M. Kantha Rao said the smugglers left in a vehicle. Its registration number was hidden and a new number was painted along with the logo of Heritage Milk Products, which is connected to the family of Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu.
Speaking to the media, the IG said, “The smugglers might have thou-ght that the police would not stop the vehicle because of the Heritage logo. Along with the disguised vehicle, the task force seized 71 smoothly cut red sanders logs. This indicates that the smugglers were experienced.” This is the ninth time that the task force had found smugglers at the place. The department has set up a CCTV camera which, however, is not working. Smugglers use disguised vehicles to escape checking. Their vehicles carry stickers like press, police, ambulance etc.
