Sabahuddin Ahmed: LeT’s key man in India

From an unassuming native of Bihar to a dreaded Lashkar-e-Tayiba terrorist, Sabahuddin Ahmed has come a long way in just six years.

His rise came despite his Lashkar minders’s unhappiness over the attack on the Indian Institute of Science in Bengaluru, which they felt had not gone according to plan. Ahmed was even pulled up for wasting a large amount of money on the terror operation.

This failure not withstanding, Ahmed was elected to meet top Inter Services Intelligence officers in Pakistan and chosen to carry out the New Year’s day 2008 attack on the Central Reserve Police Force camp in Rampur, Uttar Pradesh. He also supervised fellow Indian Fahim Ansari’s survey of targets identified for the Mumbai attacks. Ahmed was, by then, Lashkar’s chief of operations in Nepal.

The mammoth dossier on Ahmed available with Indian security agencies suggests that he returned to Pakistan immediately after the IISc attack. After receiving a dressing down from Zaki-ur Rehman Lakhwi, Lashkar’s terror-in-charge, Ahmed stayed at a Lashkar camp to train other youth.

He also involved himself in the technical side of terror and created a database of fake e-mail IDs for terrorists.

Convinced by his keen interest in terror, Lashkar leaders sent Ahmed to Bangladesh. He was sent in at a time when Lashkar and Harkat-ul-Jihadi terrorists were having trouble crossing over into India. Ahmed left for Bangladesh in December 2006 with two satellite phones and several SIM cards, which were to be handed to terrorists there.

In Bangladesh he met a man named Jahangir and with him, plotted a safe route for terrorists into India. Ahmed stayed on in Bangladesh till February 2007.

Impressed with his work, the Lashkar sent him to Nepal. Ahmed told his Indian interrogators that he stayed in Kathmandu for a month doing nothing. He enrolled for a computer course on March 10, 2007, and rented a house.

A few days later, Muzzamil, another Lashkar top terrorist, told him a man named Sohail alias Mohammad Sharif would meet him in Nepal. Muzzamil instructed Ahmed to train Sohail since he was a failed terrorist.

Sohail had been sent to India and asked to target the Kanwarias, devotees of Lord Shiva who carry Ganga Jal (water from the river Ganga) on their heads and walk to Hardwar. Sohail failed in his diabolic mission; Ahmed was asked to meet him and find out why. Later, he told Muzzamil that Sohail’s mission had failed due to lack of hard work.

Ahmed trained Sohail for a couple of months and then sent him back to Pakistan. Impressed with his work, he was asked to take care of Lashkar’s Nepal operations. Several men were sent to him for training; he also set up several routes from Nepal to infiltrate India.

Muzzamil then asked Ahmed to plan the attack in Uttar Pradesh. The CRPF camp in Rampur was identified. Three terrorists — Sahzad, Sohail and Mohammad Farooq Bhatti — were assigned to carry out this attack. Ahmed helped the trio cross the border. The Lashkar leadership deemed the attack a success. Ahmed was nominated a bigger player in the terror network’s future operations.

Ahmed’s statement to Indian intelligence agencies indicates that the plan to carry out an attack in Mumbai began to take shape on January 23, 2008. Muzzamil asked him to meet Fahim Ansari, who is also being tried for his role in the Mumbai attacks.

Ahmed had met Ansari once before, in Kathmandu, in November 2007, when he had traveled from Pakistan.

Last year, he helped Ansari, a resident of Mumbai, cross over to India where he began to collect information on various targets in his native city.

According to Indian officials who interrogated Ahmed, he was extremely crucial to the Lashkar’s plans. The fact that he met with top ISI officers during his stay in Pakistan is an indication that the Lashkar had a lot of faith in him.

Before interrogating him, the police visualised him as a hardcore terrorist. Two officers, who interrogated Ahmed in Bengaluru, told rediff.com that they were taken aback when they began to question him.

Ahmed was very soft spoken and extremely cooperative during the interrogation. The 25-year-old Bihari native attempted being friendly with his interrogators and tried to convince them about the problems that Muslim youth faced in India. He also explained why he was compelled to take to jihad.

He never posed as an accused during the entire interrogation. He portrayed himself as a victim at all times. At one point he took the interrogators by surprise when he said, ‘You people have never operated an AK-47 rifle. I know that and I also know the kind of weapons you people use. I have a great deal of expertise in handling the AK-47. I can teach all of you about the weapon.’

Hedley planned to establish a terror network

David Headley, the Lashkar-e-Tayiba operative who was arrested by the Federal Bureau of Investigation in October, is proving to be an important link in unraveling the terror network.

Intelligence Bureau agents have informed

Taj under attack

the Mumbai police that Headley made several visits to the city. The police are now probing Headley’s links with the 26/11 terror attacks in Mumbai, IB sources told rediff.com

According to information available with the IB, Headley visited Mumbai in 2006, 2007 and 2008. He changed his name to David Headley from Daood Gilani around 2006.

Sources say Headley traveled on a business visa; he got in touch with a US firm which specialised in creating fake visas and passports. He located a similar firm in Tardeo, central Mumbai, which helped him procure fake travel documents.

With the help of these fake documents, Headley traveled to India at least five times. During each visit, he made it a point to visit the visa agency.

Headley was present in India when the terror attacks on Mumbai was being planned and he may have been aware of such a plan, the IB sources say.

If investigations reveal that Headley activated a local module to assist the 26/11 attacks, the Mumbai police may file an additional charge-sheet detailing this link, the sources added.

IB agents suspect Headley’s brief in Mumbai was to establish a network of sleeper cells to assist terror attacks.

Headley also traveled to other states including Gujarat and Uttar Pradesh, using his business visa. The FBI has revealed that Headley had conducted a reconnaissance of the National Defence College in New Delhi where he planned a terror attack.

The making of a Jihadi

The chilling tale of how a reasonably bright college student descended into the dark world of jihadi terrorism.

Sabahuddin Ahmed played a key role in the 26/11 Mumbai attacks. He was the crucial Lashkar-e-Tayiba operative in Nepal, responsible for planning many attacks in India . He has been charged with three major attacks — 26/11, the January 1, 2008 attack on a Central Reserve Police Force camp in Uttar Pradesh and the December 29, 2005 attack on the Indian Institute of Science in Bengaluru.

Sabahuddin, who was arrested in February 2008, is currently being tried in a special court in Mumbai, along with Ajmal Kasab [ Images ], the lone Pakistani terrorist captured during the Mumbai attacks, and Fahim Ansari, an Indian national who conducted reconnaissance of like terror targets in Mumbai.

A dossier prepared by the Intelligence Bureau and investigating agencies spells out who exactly Sabahuddin Ahmed is.

Sabahuddin Ahmed alias Saba alias Farhan, aged 25 years, is a resident of village and post office Gandhwar, police station Sakri, Madhubani district, Bihar.

This is his confession to the investigating agencies:

“I was born in Madhubani, Bihar, on January 27, 1984. My father Shabbir Ahmed [ Images ] is an agriculturist and my mother, Shagufta Bano, is a housewife. My father is a panchayat samiti member in the Rahika block since 2001. I have two younger brothers — Imaduddin, 23, and Shahbuddin, 15.

I started my preliminary education in the Darsgah Islami School. Later I joined the J M High School at Kumatul district and passed my SSLC with a first class.

I joined the Aligarh Muslim University, UP, in the year 2000 for 10+2 in physics, chemistry and biology. During my studies, I was staying in room no 28, B Block, Allam Iqbal Hall of the AMU.

One of my classmates, Shariq Anwar of Lavam village, Bihar, suddenly disappeared. His father came to the university in search of him. I offered to help and during this period his father received a call saying that they should call off the search and not to create a scene in the university.

We realised that Anwar was in touch with a person by the name Ajmal, who was a member of the Students Islamic Movement of India. Later we got a letter from Anwar stating that there is no need to search for him since he was taking up the cause of jihad.

Later I was approached by a person by the name Athiq who asked me if there was any complaint against Anwar. I said no.

The Gujarat riots made a big difference to me. I used to meet with a school friend by the name Faraaz Ahmed who was with me in AMU. He introduced me to a person by the name Ajmal with whom we used to have discussions about the riots.

I was influenced by the way in which Ajmal used to speak. Ajmal realised that I had become emotional and I could be used for jihadi activities.

I was then taken by Ajmal to meet Athiq, who was residing in the Jamalpur area of Aligarh. He was running a coaching centre called Fathiq Coaching Centre. He was about 5.8 feet tall, sported a beard and moustache. I later realised that he was the same person who came and inquired about Anwar.

There was a lot of discussion about jihad and often we referred to the Quran. I was finally convinced that jihad is a must in a situation such as this and there was a need to take revenge for the violence in Gujarat.

During the first week of March 2002, Ajmal took me to a person named Salim Salar (Doctor). Doctor was into sending people to Pakistan via Kashmir for training for jihad. I met Doctor at his house in Jamalpur next to railway line and he asked me as to why I was interested in going for jihad. I just told him that I was interested.

I met him again the next day and he took me to Sulaiman Hall where he arranged a meeting with Basharat Jaffrey, who was basically from Surankot in Poonch district. I was told that this man would take me to Kashmir. I was asked to return on March 12 and told that I would be taken to Kashmir.

On March 12, I went to Doctor’s house carrying a small bag with clothes in it. I was given a letter in Urdu which I was asked to hide in my shoe. I was supposed to hand over this letter to a person in Kashmir. I was then taken to the railway station where Basharat was waiting along with his aunt and daughter.

We reached Jammu on March 13 and for the next two days we stayed in Bashrat’s relative’s house. From there we went to Rajouri district and stayed in a hotel that night. Next day we reached Surankot by bus at noon and went to Basharat’s house. After dropping his aunt and daughter, we left for Thana Mandi in Rajouri district.

Close to that place there is a place called Shahdra. From there we continued our journey by walk since it was a mountainous terrain. At this time Bashrat threatened me that if I revealed anything to the police in case I was arrested, he would destroy my family.

He also said that in case both were caught, I had to tell them that he was a doctor and I was accompanying him as his assistant to treat a patient.

After reaching our destination, we stayed a house in a village. Two militants armed with AK-47 rifles visited the house and spoke to Basharat. Later they took me to their hideout for which we had to trek for more than three hours.

Both of them introduced themselves as Abu Hanzala Adnan and Abu Umar Qatada. Both were Pakistan nationals and aged between 22 and 23 years. When I reached another house there were two more militants, Abu Saifulla and Salahuddin Manipur. We stayed there for a week.

From there I was taken to Abu Muslim Jarrar, the Lashkar-e-Tayiba commander of Rajouri. I handed over the letter given to me by Doctor. I then returned to the hideout. Over here I was trained to dismantle and assemble the AK-47 and also was trained to use hand grenades.

After five days, Hanzala came back to the hideout. I was then introduced to three more Lashkar militants, Abu-Al-Qasim, Abu Hamza and Abu Zarrar. I was taken to a different hideout where I spent 15 days. Here was I was given an AK-47 rifle with a magazine containing 45 rounds.

After 15 days I was taken back to the earlier hideout by Hamza and was handed over to Qatada who was present with another militant Abu Jundal. After training for a couple of days, I was taken to Hilkaka where there were around 50 militants. The commander here was Abu Fahadulla.

From here we were asked to go to Pakistan. We waked through Poonch and through several jungles until we were close to the Pakistan army [ Images ] post. We were received by the Pakistan army who took away our arms and ammunition. They gave us breakfast and registered our names and addresses.

We were then taken by the Pakistan army to a point from where the Lashkar men took us. We were taken to a Lashkar camp in a place called Forward Kahota in PoK. This is where militants are trained and later sent into Jammu and Kashmir [ Images ].

We stayed here for two days and then were taken to meet a Colonel Musa who was in the Inter Services Intelligence. However, he was not there in the camp.

I was then taken to Kotli and from there we reached a place called Ibne-Taima (code for a Lashkar camp). Here we met with Abu-Al-Qama and Azam Cheema, who later trained me.

I was then trained rigorously in this camp. We had to wake up at 3 am and offer prayers. We then had another prayer at 4.30 am and this was followed by physical training. We were then given breakfast following which we had to undergo arms training. We were trained here for four months after which we were taken to an ISI camp in Mianwali. Here we underwent training for 50 days in firing.

When they thought that I was ready, I was introduced to a Major Dogar who took me to Lahore [ Images ] airport. Before I left for the airport I also met Colonel Kiyani. He told me that I should visit my country and establish myself. I flew from Lahore to Doha, Abu Dhabi, and then to Kathmandu, from where I entered India.

I then travelled by road back to my house. My parents were shocked to see me back again. They told me that various cases of my being missing had been lodged. I told them I had gone away to Delhi [ Images ] to prepare for my exams and also worked in a bookshop there. I stayed at home for a couple of months and I kept in touch with the Lashkar in Pakistan.

After a couple of weeks, I was asked to go to Kathmandu. Here I was given to understand that an operation was being planned in Bengaluru. I was taken to Bengaluru in July 2004. Here we did a recee of several schools and colleges. However, this plan was changed later and we decided to carry out a strike on the Indian Institute of Science.

That attack was not a success and we were pulled up by the Lashkar commanders in Pakistan. We had to return to Pakistan immediately after the attack where we were told that the attack was not a success.”

Following the IISc attack, Sabahuddin trained extensively in Nepal and Pakistan following which he helped in the attack on the CRPF camp in Uttar Pradesh.

Sabahuddin also says around this time they also did a recee in Mumbai. He made arrangements to transport Fahim Ansari to Mumbai. Fahim returned to Nepal with sketches of various targets in Mumbai.

Sabahuddin was arrested in 2008 following the UP attack and it was during his interrogation that he spoke about his life and his journey into jihad. During the interrogation he also discussed at length plans for an attack on Mumbai.

Despite being informed by the UP police, the Mumbai police did not act on the information, stating that Sabahuddin Ahmed was not wanted in any case in Mumbai and hence they did not seek his custody.

Lashkar’s target: Indian schools and Bollywood stars

Union Home Secretary G K Pillai says it is clear that David Headley — the United States-based man accused of terror links by the US Federal Bureau of Investigation — was acting at the behest of the Lashkar-e-Tayiba in Pakistan.
When asked if Headley has links to the Mumbai attacks of 26/11, Pillai told rediff.com in a telephone conversation from New Delhi that it was too early to comment on this issue.

Mumbai terror attack

“Our agencies are probing the matter,” the home secretary said, “and we will get more details soon.”

He said a decision on whether to seek Headley’s extradition from the US to India would be taken once the team of Intelligence Bureau and Research and Analysis Wing agents return to India.

The FBI has provided access to agents from India’s domestic and external intelligence agencies to the information it has gathered on Headley and his associate Tahawwur Husain Rana, who is also in the FBI’s custody.

Investigations reveal that Headley — who was known as Daood Gilani till he changed his name — has visited India several times. Sources in India’s security agencies told this correspondent that Lashkar founder Mohammad Sayeed kept in regular touch with Headley and convinced him to focus on India and drop plans the American national had to attack an editor and cartoonist at the Danish newspaper which published cartoons on Prophet Mohammad two years ago.

Sources in the Intelligence Bureau told rediff.com that Headley is suspected of planning strikes on Indian schools and targeting Bollywood stars.

The IB sources say the plot to attack schools in India was devised during an exchange of e-mail between Headley, Rana and their Lashkar minders in Pakistan. The sources point out that specific intelligence about Lashkar’s plans to target Indian schools was passed on to security agencies at least three months ago.

Recent intelligence gathered by Indian intelligence agencies reveal that several terrorists are being trained in Pakistan occupied Kashmir for attacks in India.

During his reconnissance of targets in India, Headley was asked by his Lashkar minders to establish contacts with Indians who could assist his murderous missions. Indian security agencies are now trying to locate the sleeper cells who would have played a part in such attacks.

IB sources say sleeper cells in south India are being closely monitored since intelligence inputs suggest that Lashkar leaders have specifically asked sleeper cells in the south to be roused for future operations.

Headley reveals Qaeda’s plan to attack India

David Coleman Headley alias Daood Gilani has kicked up quite a storm for the Indian security agencies following his arrest and subsequent interrogation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation in the United States.

During his interrogation with the FBI, Headley gave details about the role he was to play in India along with his partner in crime, Tahawwur Hussain Rana. Currently, a team of the Indian Intelligence Bureau and officials from the Research and Analysis Wing are interrogating Headley to find out what more he has in store for India.

Sources in the IB told rediff.com that Headley’s interrogation will be three pronged. Firstly, they would find out about the plans in store for India. Secondly, they would probe the role that Al-Qaeda 313 brigade member Ilyas Kashmiri is playing in India operations. Finally, they would try to secure information on the mysterious film actor, Rahul, who has found a mention in the various transcripts.

Preliminary investigations would show that Headley was reporting to the Lashkar-e-Tayiba in Pakistan. His role was not something that was unknown to the Pakistan administration. The ISI was well aware of Headley’s role and had in fact helped him on various occasions to carry out the job.

The key aspect that emerges from Headley’s interrogation is that the Lashkar was coordinating with the Al-Qaeda to carry out an attack on the Indian soil. The IB says that his interrogation makes it clear that Ilyas Kashmiri was in fact second-in-command to Al Qaeda chief Osama Bin Laden.

According his interrogation, the Lashkar roped in Headley to carry out operations in Denmark. However, he was suddenly asked to put those plans on hold and told to carry out operations in India. The IB explains that an attack coming out of US soil would have been something that the Indian security agencies would not have anticipated.

Moreover, Headley revealed that he was in touch with the Lashkar as well as the Al-Qaeda for this operation. He communicated with them mostly through emails. It was through an email from the LeT that Headley learnt he had to lay more emphasis on the India operation. They even told him to go to India immediately and carry out a recee of the specified targets, which interrogations suggested were mainly school buildings.

However, there was a difference in opinion between the Lashkar and the Al-Qaeda on this operation. While the Lashkar was keen on striking in India first, Kashmiri thought it would be better to complete the Denmark operation first. However, both outfits agreed to go ahead with the India operation first since it would grab more attention.

The IB says that it would have to deal with more such individuals in future. Terror outfits would try and spring surprises like this and get people from various other countries to carry out strikes on Indian soil.

The Rahul factor

The IB says that this was a deliberate ploy on part of the terrorists to use a name like Rahul. The entire operation was aimed at carrying out a terror strike on Indian soil. The terrorists spoke in codes, as they were aware that the IB surveillance had increased three-fold.

The IB says that while discussing a major operation, terrorists tend to talk about an operation that is not remotely concerned with the original plot. This sends security agencies on a wild goose chase and in the meantime the real operation is planned. In this case, they spoke about a film actor by the name Rahul.

During the course of the conversation that Headley had, he also speaks about how Kashmiri — who he refers to as Pir Saab — was still alive and not killed in the drone attack. If one observes the conversations and the email transcripts that took place during the serial blasts that rocked India, there is a constant reference made to Shah Rukh Khan. It did confuse the investigating agencies, but at the end of it they realised that it was nothing but an alias for Riyaz Bhatkal, who is said to have co-founded the Indian Mujahideen.

Time to be the eyes and ears of the Govt.

Forum Mall

Shopping malls are a favourite target for terrorist organisations. How often have you seen a security guard place a mirror under your car and then letting you go inside the mall’s premises? If you call this a thorough security check, then forget it, because it is a wasteful exercise.

An expert mechanic would take not less than six hours to figure out if anything is hidden behind the wiring, and in such a circumstance, it is strange that a security guard does this in less than 30 seconds!

The fact of the matter is that in India alone there have been 4,000 warnings from various security agencies that shopping malls in the country are a prime target. The Intelligence Bureau too points out that shopping malls need most security, since there is such an large influx of people in such areas. Moreover, security is lax in these places — thus making it a favourite hub for terrorist organisations.

Arif I Sheikh, an expert on mall security, is also the chief operating officer, Retail Ansal API Group. He has been on the job since the past 14 years and has been the Director/CEO/ President of International Retail Chains and Shopping Centres.

Sheikh, who also has vast experience in managing the malls in Isreal, was recently in New Delhi and during an interaction at a Conference Counter Terror 2009, where he explained in detail about the state of security in the Indian malls, and also on what exactly needs to be done to ensure that the same is terror proof.

Excerpts from his discussion

Security in our shopping malls is a sham as on today. It is more of a free walk into the malls. We have often discussed this with various malls owners, but each one only seems worried about the cost. They will do everything to reduce the cost factor, and one of the primary victims in this ‘cost-cutting business’ is the security that directly puts the life of every shopper at risk.

Each shopping mall has a security system in place. Off late, we have been receiving reports that terror outfits find it easy to hack into these systems, and in a matter of seconds, they have the entire security system on their charts. This is extremely dangerous and measures ought to be taken to ensure their safety.

A Mumbai type attack

Lets us assume that there is a Mumbai type attack on one of the malls. It will be very difficult to overcome the terrorists in the present scenario that we have. None of the malls in the country have the capabilities to tackle such a situation. During such a scenario, the commandoes will be called in for operation. It is difficult to enter through the entry and exit points. Hence the only option would be to storm in the building from the rooftop. The strange part is that the malls do not have anchors on the rooftop to help commandoes. Such an event will only leave our security forces wondering from where they could enter and battle the terrorists.

Each mall in the country ought to have a blue print of the mall readily available. During a terrorist attack, it is easier for the security agencies to refer to such a blue print so that they could plan the next course of action. During a terrorist attack, it would be difficult to avail a blue print from the mall management and hence a blue print must be readily available outside the mall for the security agencies.

Day-to-day security

Security on a daily basis is a must. The problem is immense during festivals when the malls are jam-packed. In fact when there is a festival, I pray hard that this day passes off without any casualty. The mall management often speaks about cost cutting. It is the people who need to be safe. I request all the people visiting the malls to be on the look out at all times. They ought to report if they find any suspicious movement in the malls. What I am trying to say here is that every shopper has to be the ‘eyes and ears’ of the government. Even the workers in the mall should bear this in mind. What I have been noticing is that the people are indifferent and this attitude ought to change and they must realise that malls are primary target for any terrorist organisation.

Retina analysis

This is a compulsory feature that every mall in the country needs to introduce. There is a security agency in every mall that keeps a watch on the movement of people through close-circuit televisions, but this is not helpful. Terrorists, who walk into a mall, will do so very normally. During a terrorist training programme, they are taught this over and over again. They are trained for hours to walk normally so that the CCTVs do not pick up any suspicious movement. However, it has been proven scientifically that the best way to pick up suspicious movement in crowded places is through the eyes. The eye movement of a terrorist is never normal and this can be picked up through retina analysis, and hence such systems ought to be in place in every mall.

Securing the CWG-2010

The 2010 Commonwealth Games in New Delhi tops the radar of terrorist organisations according to sources in India’s Intelligence Bureau.

While Indian security agencies are working hard to ensure that the Games go on without a problem, a lot more still needs to be done.

Gerry O’Connell is the chief of the Lancashire constabulary, one of the United Kingdom’s largest police forces. A police officer for 35 years, he was part of the British team that planned a counter-terrorist strategy against Irish Republican Army terrorists.

O’Connell was in New Delhi last week to attend the conference on Counter Terror India-2009. During an interaction with rediff.com’s Vicky Nanjappa, he shared his views on what India must do to ensure that the security at the Commonwealth Games is fool-proof.

Intelligence inputs would suggest that the Games are likely to targeted by groups, big or small. Targetting such an event would give a terrorist organisation the kind of recognition they yearn for. Even smaller groups will try and attack this event so that they can get recognition and funds.

I have dealt with the IRA, but this threat that India faces is more grave. IRA cadres were not ready to die, but here the case is the opposite.

It is key to assess the risks and then plan out a security strategy. An operational blueprint must be prepared and the security worked around this. The most important factor is to know the enemy. There needs to be day to day assessment of the external and internal threats.

The security agencies should prepare a blueprint of the measures to be undertaken in New Delhi.

They should ensure safe and secure venues apart from ensuring the following:

*Safe and secure resilient events
*Safe and secure transport
*Safe, critical infrastructure
*Secure the physical environment
*Effective vetting control

The security agencies would do well to ensure that there is safe ticketing and protection of the key people including the athletes. India should also look for effective command, control, leadership and also seek international cooperation on this issue.

Scanning of all persons including the athletes has to start from the time the registration commences. There should be constant helicopter surveillance.

There is an absolute need for India to have a very clear command operation. An important feature to ensure fool-proof security is to share the burden. Departments should not be working by themselves on this issue.

There has to be cross government departmental interaction where security is concerned. A blame game will not help the cause. All departments should share the ownership of the risk factors involved in hosting these Games.

Ilyas puts the southern modules in active mode

The southern module

Ilyas Kashmiri may have risen from the dead. Contrary to the US intelligence’ report in September, the chief of Al Qaeda’s 313 brigade has survived a drone attack and is currently working on carrying out intensive fidayeen strikes in India, specifically South India.

The Indian Army chief and sources from Indian intelligence agencies have confirmed that India is facing a grave threat from terror outfits. Intelligence agencies believe that Kashmiri has shifted his focus from the US troops to India.

In an alleged interview given to the chief of Asia Times’ Pakistan bureau, Ilyas has claimed that he is “hale and hearty” and is reportedly focused on an operation in India called ‘Ghazwa-e-Hind’, meaning ‘Anger against India’, and the attacks are aimed at making a point to India that any tie-up with the US will not be tolerated.

Indian intelligence and law enforcing agencies will have to take this threat seriously as Kashmiri had stated in the interview that the attack would be on such a large scale that India would be stunned that the attacks in Mumbai would fade in gravity compared to the one he was planning, the report said.

Sources from the Intelligence Bureau told rediff.com that with the US heat on Kashmir i extremely high, he has now moved to Pakistan occupied Kashmir from Wazirstan and is in touch with cadres of both the Lashkar-e-Tayiba and the Harkat-ul-Jihadi.

Kashmiri is expected to push at least 40 terrorists into India to carry out the attack in a major city of India. The idea is to strike at a place where the US interests would be hurt most, said IB sources.

A phone call intercept picked up by the IB suggests that the attack may most likely be in South India.

According to intelligence sources, the Al Qaeda has decided to use some of its finest fighters for the mission and Kashmiri has been training these men personally, under the aegis of the 313 brigade.

Kashmiri, according to the IB, has issued a statement to his cadres asking them to activate and coordinate the cells in Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh immediately, apart from those in West Bengal, Delhi and Uttar Pradesh to aid the operation.

The IB believes that Kashmiri would be using cadres from the local modules to provide logistic support like data on key installations, and the route for sending arms and men for the attack.

Kashmiri is planning to use cells of the LeT and HuI, which are considered strongest in Andhra Pradesh, since he believes that these units are most trustworthy.

This time, Kashmiri may use militants from Pakistan and Afghanistan only for the attack, and local modules may restrict to logistics and in helping the Fidayeens take a safe route to their destination.

Most of the local modules are in sleeping mode presently and it is just a matter of days before cadres move towards PoK, the IB said.

Maoists are patriots- This is a myth

Mahendra Lal Kumawat

The threat posed by the burgeoning Maoist movement is grave and if it is not controlled in time, the Indian democracy could be in serious danger, believes Mahendra Lal Kumawat, former director general of the Border Security Force and former special secretary (internal security).

Kumawat, who delivered an hour-long lecture at a conference on Counter Terror 2009 in New Delhi, also talked to rediff.com’s Vicky Nanjappa about the internal threat posed by the Maoists and the terror menace from across the border, in the wake of the terror attack on Mumbai.

On the dire consequences of underestimating the Maoist threat:

“This is the greatest internal threat to India. The bigger problem is that the Maoists are tying up with anti-national forces in order to further their cause. The belief that Naxalites will not team up with anti-national forces is a myth. They will do anything and everything to ensure that India does not become a super power and the country is robbed of its democracy.

In order to further their cause, the Maoists are procuring weapons from outside India and they have tied up with Jihadi elements. Initially, politicians of our country termed them as patriots. I have gone through the literature of the Maoists in detail. They very openly state that the democracy in India is a sham and their main intention is to throw out democracy from our country.

We need highly specialised forces to deal with the sophisticated weapons they have procured through the Jihadi elements. The Maoists have mastered the strategy of tackling the security forces by outnumbering them in the jungles. While the threat looms large, the apathy shown by some of the state governments in dealing with this issue is terrible. Take Bihar for instance. There have been no fresh recruitments in the police force for 14 years. This means that there are no young cadres to fight the Naxals. The case in Jharkhand is similar.

The Maoists are adopting general warfare and their fight against our security forces is restricted to the jungles. Very few police personnel can fight in the jungle. The major difference between the police force and the Maoists is that the latter are ready to die for their fight, the policemen are not.

This is because our police personnel do not have the motivation that the Naxals do. Another issue that needs to be mentioned is the temporary tenure of a police man. His tenure is like a football; before a policeman can get accustomed to the situation, he gets transferred.

The biggest culprits who have given rise to this problem are civil rights activists and film producers who spare no effort to romanticise the cause of these Maoists. Movies are being made to depict them as heroes. What these people don’t realise is that by romanticising the cause of the Maoists, they are only contributing to the bloodshed.

The war against these people is not easy. They are great strategists and after each incident, they analyse the pros and cons of it. They conduct extensive researches and after each incident, they learn from their mistakes and make amends during the next attack.

There are certain issues that one needs to bear in mind. We need to understand their ideology. We must realise that the Maoists are not friends of this nation. Whoever thinks in this manner is living in a fool’s paradise.

It would be foolish to use the Indian Army to curb the Maoist threat. Our police forces should be upgraded to fight these people. Using the Army against them means we have lost the battle and accepted that our police are incapable of fighting these people.

On the Mumbai terror attack and the threat from across the border:

“During the Mumbai terror attack, there was an absolute lack of coordination, which made the attack a successful one. What happened on that day was horrid. The scene was chaotic. The Mumbai police commissioner was not available in the control room and hence they were not able to coordinate and counter the attack.

We speak so much about enhancing security. However, enhanced security alone will not help in preventing a Mumbai-type attack. Intelligence gathering is a key aspect (of preventing a terror attack) and there has to be constant upgrading of our intelligence network. We must also make efforts to network and coordinate our forces so that the enemy is on the back foot. We must create a data base of people posing a threat to our nation and each person in the security force must have access to the same.

Securing our borders is also an important aspect of fighting terrorism. We are aware of the fact that a person determined to enter the country will do so anyway. What we need to do is to secure the borders even more.

I personally feel that there is a grave threat from our border with Bangladesh. This border witnesses a lot of infiltration and this border ought to be fenced completely. As I pointed out earlier, there have been instances of people entering the country from across the border. They bribe the security forces and at times even kill them to enter the country. The need of the hour is not to slip up at any cost and maintain an eternal vigil.

Without Intel, 90 per cent of the battle is lost

G K Pillai. Photo courtesy:mha.nic.in

After the 26/11 terror attacks in Mumbai, India’s security agencies have undertaken a series of reforms to ensure that similar attacks does not occur again.

At last week’s Counter Terror-2009 conference in New Delhi, several security experts discussed the immediate terror challenges that India and the world confronts.

Union Home Secretary Gopal Krishna Pillai spoke at length on developing a robust counter-terrorism strategy to combat emerging threats.

During his hour-long address, Pillai dealt with various aspects of security while laying special emphasis on sharing intelligence.

Excerpts from the home secretary’s speech:

India faces a threat from both internal and external terror, and counter-terrorism encompasses both these threats. The most important measure is intelligence, and if this aspect is not right, then consider 90 per cent of the battle lost.

What remains if intelligence fails is nothing but reacting to the situation, and hence, analysing intelligence is a very key aspect.

Post 26/11, intelligence sharing has been taking place on a daily basis. The Government of India is constantly looking for intelligence agencies that can piece together intelligence effectively. Such agencies, along with the counter-terror agencies, are the need of the hour so that we can eliminate as well as restrict the movement of terrorists, and if this happens effectively, then we are at a great advantage.

India as a country needs to take up these measures and also constantly upgrade our forces. Unlike the United States of America, we do not go on the offensive mode, since that is just not our policy. Hence, it is important that we upgrade our forces and intelligence so that the movement of terrorists is completely restricted.

On the international borders

We have large international borders and the Indo-Pak border is the most well defined one, apart from being well protected. While our Indo-China border is reasonably protected, the one which is worrisome is the Indo-Nepal border and is considered to be most porous.

It is time to look closely at this border and enhance security, since this is becoming a free route for terror activities. Today India is taking this border very seriously and has already started to enhance security along this border.

India is also looking at introducing Unique Identification Numbers for all its citizens, and I personally feel that once this is in place, it would be a good source of security for all of us.

On maritime security

While work on the borders is underway, I could easily say that our biggest threat today is through the maritime borders. We are constantly upgrading maritime security, and by March next year, we would have added several more interceptor boats.

We have been constantly discussing this issue during various high level meetings. However, maritime security is not easy. There are lakhs (hundreds of thousands) of fishing boats, and it is almost impossible to monitor each one of them. We could put an interceptor on a big boat, but the smaller ones are a problem.

What has been discussed is that we need to apprehend them once they land, and hence, security along the beach area needs to be tight. Since it is next to impossible to keep a tab on every fishing boat, we need to catch them once they land.

However, there should be no slip-ups once they land, since if they manage to dodge security and enter into the cities, it would become very difficult to stop them after that.

On internal insurgency

It is a well-known fact that we face a serious threat due to internal insurgency. We need quick intelligence in such matters in order to deal with this threat. What we have realised that several state governments are yet to wake up to this threat, and many states are not aware that a lot of activity is taking place secretively.

We have our para-military forces in place to deal with internal insurgency, but our police forces are understaffed. We have just 125 policemen for every lakh (hundred thousand) of people, and the government and the political class ought to realise that this is a serious issue.

The problem is that building police stations and increasing the police force does not earn votes. I say that these issues should top the political radar in the interest of the national security.

We speak of recruitment into the police force. However, we ought to realise that recruiting is not the problem. Training them is. There is a shortage of training institutes and trainers in the country, and it is time to take a quick call on this issue. With each passing day, the number of refugees is increasing in the country.

We ought to keep our eyes open to this, and if the situation develops, it is sure going to go out of hand and it will not be easy at all to deal with.

On lessons learnt from the Mumbai attacks

What one witnessed during the Mumbai attack was that each security wing was doing something different, which acted as an advantage to the enemy.

The first thing that the heads of each department ought to do at the time of such an attack is land up in the control room. From here the rest of the force is to be mobilised and the counter-attack coordinated.

In the first 15 minutes of the attack, security forces ought to know what exactly is to be done. During the Mumbai attack, this did not happen and hence gave the terrorists advantage of time.

Apart from intelligence sharing and strategy by security forces at the time of an attack, the forces also have to carry out mock drills on a daily basis.

There is no point in just planning things. Mock sessions in various locations and high-profile areas ought to be carried out, so that the forces have ample practice to counter a terrorist attack.