Making of a terrorist

A true story of how a trip to Dubai for job landed Faheem in terror biz

One sultry October evening in 2005, when 21-year-old Faheem Ahmad Ansari bid a tearful farewell to his family at the Sahar international airport, little did he or his family realise that he was starting on a journey that would change his life forever.

And that the transformation - from a true citizen of the world to a terrorist who scouted for targets in Mumbai - would happen even without his knowledge.

Ansari had to support his family, and he was on his way to Dubai in search of a job. He did find one as an apprentice in a paper company, and life turned good not just for him but his family, too — Ansari was sending money back home.

Being religious, he visited a mosque regularly, and that is where his beliefs started changing. Ansari had befriended a person who called himself Alim. Their friendship grew - and it culminated in him becoming the enemy of the Indian state. Alim had brainwashed Ansari into becoming a terrorist. He had also persuaded Ansari to go to Pakistan for a full-fledged training in terrorism.

To ensure Ansari’s passage to Pakistan without raising suspicion, his “friends” destroyed his Indian passport in December 2006 and showed him as a Pakistani living illegally in Dubai. With nothing to show for his nationality in an alien land, Ansari, now completely at the mercy of his “friends”, was deported to Pakistan by Dubai authorities.
Once in Pakistan, he was given a fresh identity - he became Mohammad Ansar, a Pakistani national. It was also the beginning of his metamorphosis into a hardcore terrorist.

Ansari, alias Ansar, was put on a rigorous training in a camp run by the Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT). He was also trained in the art of communication through the Internet. After eight months, he was ready: he set out to identify targets in Mumbai.

In November 2007, before coming to Mumbai, Ansari was asked to visit Kathmandu in Nepal, where he met LeT commander Sabauddin.

Here, all documents indicating that he was a Pakistani were destroyed and he was given a new name, Sahil Pawaskar, with an email id: pawaskar@yahoo.co.in. The name was chose keeping in mind that Faheem would be going to Mumbai to do a recce, the officer said. Faheem told the ATS that Sahil Pawaskar was the name of a friend in Dubai, the officer said.

Ansari — now Sahil Pawaskar — entered India through the Uttar Pradesh border and boarded a train from Patna to Mumbai. In Mumbai, he stayed in a dormitory in Kurla for a few days and surveyed the city. He kept in touch with his commander Sabauddin over the internet, the officer said.

Ansari was told that all communication with the LeT operatives should happen only through internet chatting, a senior police officer from the Anti-Terrorism Squad, who did not want to be named, said. “That way, agencies cannot trace the conversation.” A few days later, Ansari was asked to move closer to South Mumbai so that he could survey the area properly. He took up lodging on Falkland Road in Grant Road.

During his mission, Ansari, who had not been in touch with his family ever since he lost his identity in Dubai, got homesick and tried calling his wife.

According to the ATS officer, Ansari called up his residence in Jogeshwari from a PCO posing as his friend. His brother, who answered the phone, recognised the voice. A scared Ansari disconnected the line and never called again, the officer said.

After he surveyed sensitive areas like the Bombay Stock Exchange, Gateway of India and Churchgate station, he was told by his bosses to return to Kathmandu to take four fidayeens to Mumbai to carry out blasts in the month of February. However, his mission was cut short. Faheem Ahmad Ansari, aka Mohammad Ansar, aka Sahil Pawaskar, was arrested by the Uttar Pradesh police in Lucknow while on his way to Kathmandu.
d_nikhil@dnaindia.net