In an exclusive chat with Anupam Dasgupta, ATS chief KP Raghuvanshi talks about police claims that they had cracked the 11/7 blasts.
For long, he has been in the line of fire. A thousand queries are aimed at KP Raghuvanshi every day on city’s security-related issues. Especially, after the recent bomb blasts that rocked the city. In an exclusive chat with Anupam Dasgupta, the Anti-Terrorism Squad chief talks about police claims that they had cracked the 11/7 blasts riddle and contents of the dossier to be submitted to the Centre ahead of the crucial Indo-Pak foreign secretaries’ meet in New Delhi in November. Excerpts:
You claimed that you have cracked 11/7 case. But several questions leave unanswered. Especially, about the larger blasts conspiracy and content of the unaccessed personal emails belonging to the arrested accused. What do you say?
The blasts probe is not over yet. We are also looking into some aspects of the larger blasts conspiracy and efforts are aimed at acquiring a holistic picture of the entire 11/7 plot. We are seeking expert technical help (from Yahoo and others) to crack the personal email accounts belonging to the accused.
What is the dossier (comprehensive report) to be submitted to the Centre soon likely to contain?
The new patterns reflected in the July terrorist strike could be mentioned. That the Lashkar-e-Tayyiba (LeT) and the Jaish-e-Mohammad (JeM) came together to execute one single act of terror is a relatively new phenomenon in the Indian context. The “terrorist financing” angle, too, will be incorporated. We have sought assistance from the Enforcement Directorate and the Revenue Intelligence Directorate.
Is Jaish-e-Mohammad (like Lashkar) too trying to infiltrate into Mumbai?
Yes they are. Confessions of Zuber Mohammad and Mohammad Sohail (arrested from West Bengal) point to that. They told us that they were to the city on suicide missions. Also four other (the duo’s associates) Jaish operatives had sneaked into India. It worries us since Jaish is an organisation specialising in executing suicide attacks.
When are you planning to file the chargesheets against the arrested accused? Will that be done before the Indo-Pak foreign secretaries’ talks in November?
The filing of the chargesheet virtually has nothing to do with the meeting of the foreign secretaries meet. We will chargesheet the accused only after the investigations are over.
Have the Lashkar-e-Tayyiba top brass sanctioned 11/7 plan?
Certainly there are indications which point to the involvement of names bigger than that of Azaam Cheema. We are verifying more detail.
You have been denying an al Qaeda imprint on 11/7? Any change in your assessment?
There is no direct al Qaeda involvement in 11/7. But at the same it is a fact that Lashkar/Jaish and al Qaeda are part of a terror compact.
Any special strategy to bolster intelligence gathering in future?
A comprehensive plan is already put in place to add thrust to intelligence gathering and analyses. Also the dedicated cadre to be set up for the intelligence arm will be a shot in the arm.
How your team made significant progress in the 11/7 probe?
Selective elimination of the peripheral detail played a key role in accessing true facts. Intensive interrogation also helped in getting many minute detail over the days.
Mumbai has earned the dubious distinction of being the “most-attacked city” in the world. What are future plans to ward off such terrorist strikes?
Some new security models are being put in place. But I can’t disclose them now. The security architecture of vital installations (like the BARC and the ports/airports) are also being reviewed.
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