Saswat Panigrahi
It’s been a year. The scars of a 60-hour-long terror seize which scripted a gory tale in blood is very much alive. The fidayeen attacks were coordinated shootings and bombings on multiple targets across India’s financial capital unleashed by Pakistan based jihadi elements.
The attacks took place at Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus, the Oberoi Trident, the Taj Mahal Palace and Tower, Leopold Cafe, Cama Hospital, Nariman House, Metro Cinema and a lane behind the Times of India building and St. Xavier's College. There was also an explosion at Mazagaon, in Mumbai's port area, and another in a taxi at Vile Parle.
The unprecedented terror strikes, which shook India and startled the world, started on November 26 2008 and ended on November 29, 2008, snuffed out the lives of at least 166 innocent people and wounded more then 300. Among the dead were 136 Indians and 28 foreign nationals from 10 countries.
Mumbai police, Rapid Action Force personnel, Marine commandos and National Security Guards commandos performed with remarkable bravery and professionalism in their battle with the terrorists. 15 policemen and two NSG commandos sacrificed their lives in the counter-offensive. Assistant Police Sub-Inspector Tukaram Omble, who succeeded in capturing a terrorist alive, Mumbai Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS) Chief Hemant Karkare, Additional Commissioner of Police Ashok Kamte, Encounter Specialist Vijay Salaskar, Senior Inspector Shashank Shinde were among the 15 policemen killed in the operation. NSG Commandos Major Sandeep Unnikrishnan, Hawaldar Gajendra Singh were also killed during the counter-offensive.
What may be the most well-documented terror strikes of the recent times, the attacks which were carried out by ten trained Pakistani young jihadis, were meticulously planned several months ahead of time. The attacks were executed by the Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) inside Pakistan. Reports say former officials from the Pakistani Army and its ace intelligence service Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) helped training the Mumbai attackers. The sophistication in the design of the terror strike also clearly points to an official backing from Pakistani agencies. However, a possible involvement of local elements in the role of facilitators can’t be ruled out.
Indian investigations reveal that the ten jihadis, who traveled to Mumbai from Karachi via Porbandar across the Arabian Sea, hijacked Indian fishing trawler 'Kuber', killed the crew and entered Mumbai on a rubber dinghy. They have a detailed lay out plans of their targets. To navigate to Mumbai by sea and to find their targets, the terrorists used Global Positioning System handsets. They also used Google Earth to familiarise themselves with the locations of their targets. Moreover, the attackers were constantly directed by handlers from inside Pakistan via mobile phones and Voice over Internet Protocol.
The investigation further reveals that each jihadi carried a dozen hand grenades, a 9 mm handgun with two 18-round clips and an AK-47, seven to nine 30-round magazines and more than 100 rounds of loose ammunition. Each attacker also carried a 17.6-pound (8 kg) bomb. Type 86 Grenades made by China's state-owned Norinco were used in the attacks.
Reports say the terrorists used at least three SIM cards purchased on the Indian side of the border with Bangladesh, pointing to a local involvement. Reports further suggest that one SIM card was purchased in New Jersey, US.
Blood tests of the jihadis indicate that they had taken cocaine, Lysergic Acid Diethylamide drugs and steroids during the attacks to sustain their energy for long hours.
Investigations revealed that the attackers were in their twenties. Nine of the ten attackers were from the Pakistan’s Punjab province, one was from the North-West Frontier Province of Pakistan. Nine of the ten gunmen were shot dead during the counter offensive by security forces and Ajmal Amir Kasab, the lone terrorist, who was captured alive, is now facing the trail.
After a series of denials to India’s dossier on Mumabi attacks, Pakistan which continues to be a safe heaven for terrorists buckled under tremendous international pressure. Pakistani Interior Minister Rehman Malik finally agreed that "some part of the conspiracy" did take place in Pakistan and promised to bring the perpetrators of the Mumbai attacks to justice.
The Pakistani authorities have also admitted to their Indian counterparts that the LeT plotted and financed the attacks. Pakistani investigations conducted on LeT camps in Karachi and Thatta revealed diaries, training manuals, maps of India and operational instructions relating to 26/11. "The investigation has established beyond any reasonable doubt that the defunct LeT activists conspired, abetted, planned, financed and established [the] communication network to carry out terror attacks in Mumbai," said a report from Pakistani investigators to Indian authorities.
However, Pakistan which is not abandoning its policy on supporting terror groups, has come up short of Hafiz Saeed, the founder of Lashkar-e-Taiba, believed to be the mastermind of terrorist siege of Mumbai. Saeed, against whom an international arrest warrant was issued by Interpol, was freed by a Pakistani court from detention on the ground that the Pakistani Government did not have enough evidence against him, outlining Islamabad's lack of seriousness in its ‘commitment’ to bring the perpetrators of the carnage to justice.
But an ‘under-the-table’ diplomacy of the Congress-led UPA Government has failed to bend Pakistan. Moreover, it had shocked the nation by delinking terrorism from composite dialogue in the Sharm el-Sheikh Indo-Pak joint statement, issued by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and his Pakistani counterpart Yousuf Raza Gilani in July last, replicating a Charles De Gaulle line. It is to recall that after 26/11, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh had categorically stated that there was no question of holding dialogue with Pakistan unless it gives enough proof of taking action against its nationals who masterminded Mumbai attacks, and initiate steps to dismantle the terror infrastructure on its soil.
In the recent months disclose, David Coleman Headley, an American citizen of Pakistani origin, his associate Tahawwur Rana, another Pakistani origin Canadian citizen, both currently in FBI custody in the US are believed to have played a key role in the Mumbai attacks and were also plotting similar terror strikes in strategic locations of the country including the prestigious National Defence College in New Delhi. There are reports which also suggest Headley’s link to Bollywood. Reports also indicate that the notorious Pakistani intelligence agency ISI could be linked to Headley. Meanwhile, an official inquiry in New Delhi has revealed that the Consulate General of India in Chicago had issued multiple entry visas to Rana and his wife under the ‘discretionary quota’ in October 2008, outlining a major security lapse.
On the eve of the first anniversary of 26/11, a Pakistani anti-terror court has indicted LeT's operations commander Zakiur Rehman Lakhvi and six others for involvement in the Mumbai attacks and declared 16 people, including Ajmal Amir Kasab, as proclaimed offenders. In a related development, Pakistan has also confirmed that a retired army major had been arrested for his alleged links with Headley and Rana.
At a time the country is paying tribute to the heroes and victims of Mumbai terror attacks, let’s discuss the naked truth. 26/11 has laid thread bare an abysmal intelligence and a spineless security, which helped the terror seize to succeed. Further, there are questions which will continue to haunt the Government. How bullets traversed through the bullet-proof jacket of three top Mumbai cops ATS Chief Hemant Karkare, ACP Ashok Kamte, Encounter Specialist Vijay Salaskar? Karkare’s bullet-proof jacket is reportedly goes missing, so as the file on the procurement of those jackets. An inept RR Patil, ‘famous’ for his utterly ridicules remark right after the terror seize -- “Bade shehron mein aisi choti baatein hoti rehti hai” -- got back to his old portfolio of Maharashtra Home Minister. Reports suggest that the cost of keeping the lone gun man Kasab alive is as much as Rs 31 crore and counting. A year after 26/11 when PM Manmohan Singh is having a ‘lavish and extravagant’ dinner at the White House, rehabilitation still elude more then two-thirds of the victims and their families.
Rightly says, Army Chief Gen Deepak Kapoor, "The US has not allowed a second 9/11 to happen, Indonesia has not allowed a second Bali-bombing to happen. India has allowed people to get away after the Parliament attack, Delhi blasts and finally the 26/11 incident. The time for all of us has come to say no more.”
However, in the larger reckoning, the problem remains. India is being systematically targeted by jihadi elements. One year on, is India alert and prepared to thrwart future terror attacks?
The attacks took place at Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus, the Oberoi Trident, the Taj Mahal Palace and Tower, Leopold Cafe, Cama Hospital, Nariman House, Metro Cinema and a lane behind the Times of India building and St. Xavier's College. There was also an explosion at Mazagaon, in Mumbai's port area, and another in a taxi at Vile Parle.
The unprecedented terror strikes, which shook India and startled the world, started on November 26 2008 and ended on November 29, 2008, snuffed out the lives of at least 166 innocent people and wounded more then 300. Among the dead were 136 Indians and 28 foreign nationals from 10 countries.
Mumbai police, Rapid Action Force personnel, Marine commandos and National Security Guards commandos performed with remarkable bravery and professionalism in their battle with the terrorists. 15 policemen and two NSG commandos sacrificed their lives in the counter-offensive. Assistant Police Sub-Inspector Tukaram Omble, who succeeded in capturing a terrorist alive, Mumbai Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS) Chief Hemant Karkare, Additional Commissioner of Police Ashok Kamte, Encounter Specialist Vijay Salaskar, Senior Inspector Shashank Shinde were among the 15 policemen killed in the operation. NSG Commandos Major Sandeep Unnikrishnan, Hawaldar Gajendra Singh were also killed during the counter-offensive.
What may be the most well-documented terror strikes of the recent times, the attacks which were carried out by ten trained Pakistani young jihadis, were meticulously planned several months ahead of time. The attacks were executed by the Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) inside Pakistan. Reports say former officials from the Pakistani Army and its ace intelligence service Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) helped training the Mumbai attackers. The sophistication in the design of the terror strike also clearly points to an official backing from Pakistani agencies. However, a possible involvement of local elements in the role of facilitators can’t be ruled out.
Indian investigations reveal that the ten jihadis, who traveled to Mumbai from Karachi via Porbandar across the Arabian Sea, hijacked Indian fishing trawler 'Kuber', killed the crew and entered Mumbai on a rubber dinghy. They have a detailed lay out plans of their targets. To navigate to Mumbai by sea and to find their targets, the terrorists used Global Positioning System handsets. They also used Google Earth to familiarise themselves with the locations of their targets. Moreover, the attackers were constantly directed by handlers from inside Pakistan via mobile phones and Voice over Internet Protocol.
The investigation further reveals that each jihadi carried a dozen hand grenades, a 9 mm handgun with two 18-round clips and an AK-47, seven to nine 30-round magazines and more than 100 rounds of loose ammunition. Each attacker also carried a 17.6-pound (8 kg) bomb. Type 86 Grenades made by China's state-owned Norinco were used in the attacks.
Reports say the terrorists used at least three SIM cards purchased on the Indian side of the border with Bangladesh, pointing to a local involvement. Reports further suggest that one SIM card was purchased in New Jersey, US.
Blood tests of the jihadis indicate that they had taken cocaine, Lysergic Acid Diethylamide drugs and steroids during the attacks to sustain their energy for long hours.
Investigations revealed that the attackers were in their twenties. Nine of the ten attackers were from the Pakistan’s Punjab province, one was from the North-West Frontier Province of Pakistan. Nine of the ten gunmen were shot dead during the counter offensive by security forces and Ajmal Amir Kasab, the lone terrorist, who was captured alive, is now facing the trail.
After a series of denials to India’s dossier on Mumabi attacks, Pakistan which continues to be a safe heaven for terrorists buckled under tremendous international pressure. Pakistani Interior Minister Rehman Malik finally agreed that "some part of the conspiracy" did take place in Pakistan and promised to bring the perpetrators of the Mumbai attacks to justice.
The Pakistani authorities have also admitted to their Indian counterparts that the LeT plotted and financed the attacks. Pakistani investigations conducted on LeT camps in Karachi and Thatta revealed diaries, training manuals, maps of India and operational instructions relating to 26/11. "The investigation has established beyond any reasonable doubt that the defunct LeT activists conspired, abetted, planned, financed and established [the] communication network to carry out terror attacks in Mumbai," said a report from Pakistani investigators to Indian authorities.
However, Pakistan which is not abandoning its policy on supporting terror groups, has come up short of Hafiz Saeed, the founder of Lashkar-e-Taiba, believed to be the mastermind of terrorist siege of Mumbai. Saeed, against whom an international arrest warrant was issued by Interpol, was freed by a Pakistani court from detention on the ground that the Pakistani Government did not have enough evidence against him, outlining Islamabad's lack of seriousness in its ‘commitment’ to bring the perpetrators of the carnage to justice.
But an ‘under-the-table’ diplomacy of the Congress-led UPA Government has failed to bend Pakistan. Moreover, it had shocked the nation by delinking terrorism from composite dialogue in the Sharm el-Sheikh Indo-Pak joint statement, issued by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and his Pakistani counterpart Yousuf Raza Gilani in July last, replicating a Charles De Gaulle line. It is to recall that after 26/11, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh had categorically stated that there was no question of holding dialogue with Pakistan unless it gives enough proof of taking action against its nationals who masterminded Mumbai attacks, and initiate steps to dismantle the terror infrastructure on its soil.
In the recent months disclose, David Coleman Headley, an American citizen of Pakistani origin, his associate Tahawwur Rana, another Pakistani origin Canadian citizen, both currently in FBI custody in the US are believed to have played a key role in the Mumbai attacks and were also plotting similar terror strikes in strategic locations of the country including the prestigious National Defence College in New Delhi. There are reports which also suggest Headley’s link to Bollywood. Reports also indicate that the notorious Pakistani intelligence agency ISI could be linked to Headley. Meanwhile, an official inquiry in New Delhi has revealed that the Consulate General of India in Chicago had issued multiple entry visas to Rana and his wife under the ‘discretionary quota’ in October 2008, outlining a major security lapse.
On the eve of the first anniversary of 26/11, a Pakistani anti-terror court has indicted LeT's operations commander Zakiur Rehman Lakhvi and six others for involvement in the Mumbai attacks and declared 16 people, including Ajmal Amir Kasab, as proclaimed offenders. In a related development, Pakistan has also confirmed that a retired army major had been arrested for his alleged links with Headley and Rana.
At a time the country is paying tribute to the heroes and victims of Mumbai terror attacks, let’s discuss the naked truth. 26/11 has laid thread bare an abysmal intelligence and a spineless security, which helped the terror seize to succeed. Further, there are questions which will continue to haunt the Government. How bullets traversed through the bullet-proof jacket of three top Mumbai cops ATS Chief Hemant Karkare, ACP Ashok Kamte, Encounter Specialist Vijay Salaskar? Karkare’s bullet-proof jacket is reportedly goes missing, so as the file on the procurement of those jackets. An inept RR Patil, ‘famous’ for his utterly ridicules remark right after the terror seize -- “Bade shehron mein aisi choti baatein hoti rehti hai” -- got back to his old portfolio of Maharashtra Home Minister. Reports suggest that the cost of keeping the lone gun man Kasab alive is as much as Rs 31 crore and counting. A year after 26/11 when PM Manmohan Singh is having a ‘lavish and extravagant’ dinner at the White House, rehabilitation still elude more then two-thirds of the victims and their families.
Rightly says, Army Chief Gen Deepak Kapoor, "The US has not allowed a second 9/11 to happen, Indonesia has not allowed a second Bali-bombing to happen. India has allowed people to get away after the Parliament attack, Delhi blasts and finally the 26/11 incident. The time for all of us has come to say no more.”
However, in the larger reckoning, the problem remains. India is being systematically targeted by jihadi elements. One year on, is India alert and prepared to thrwart future terror attacks?
