Internal Security Watch

sum · Post by **sum** » 23 Jul 2009 09:39

Abdul Halim who has now been nabbed again in connection with the twin blasts in Kozhikode in 2006 has admitted that the vehicle he had stolen from Aluva in March 2008 was intended for the Bangalore blasts .

Apparently, the arrest of the 33-year-old “bomb expert’’, in a vehicle theft case did not deter his friends from proceeding with the serial blasts in Bangalore in July.

“When he was caught, he told us then that he had stolen the vehicle for meeting the treatment expenses of his wife who was hospitalised,’’ said Kochi city police commissioner Manoj Abraham while producing Halim before the media on Wednesday. “We had to believe him because when we enquired, we found that his wife was actually admitted to hospital,’’ he said. Halim has now admitted that he had planned to proceed to Bangalore with the vehicle for use there.

Halim is a key aide of Thadiyantavide Nazir who is involved in the Bangalore blasts as well as headed the terror recruitment drive from Kerala. A former member of Abdul Nasser Madhani’s People’s Democratic Party (PDP), he had undergone training in handling arms and use of explosives in Hyderabad.

He was also involved in recruiting of youths for jihad. Police said they got to Halim while interrogating some 600 youths who were involved in criminal cases since 1998 as part of the investigations into last week’s blast at the Ernakulam district collectorate.{600?? The police seems to be going the whole hog}

Halim is also accused in the Kalamassery (Kochi) bus torching case, a twin murder case in Kannur, fake currency case besides the Aluva vehicle theft and the Kozhikode blasts.

However, the police said they were yet to stumble on any evidence linking him to the collectorate blast which had necessitated the investigations that led to his arrest.

Avinash R · Post by **Avinash R** » 23 Jul 2009 10:19

^ Again PDP.

rkirankr · Post by **rkirankr** » 23 Jul 2009 11:34

Did not know where to post , this seems to be the most appropriate for this news

http://www.dailypioneer.com/190733/Kand ... ailed.html

Sachin · Post by **Sachin** » 23 Jul 2009 13:26

Avinash R wrote:^ Again PDP.

Do you think a tiger will be able to hide his stripes for long? PDP what ever the gimmick they try, their hidden agenda is now pretty much an open secret. I am a bit surprised that the commie leaders of CPI(M) decided to mollycoddle with this party. It took a solid drubbing in the recent elections which made commie leaders to admit that the alliance was a big mistake. Old pal Mahdani is now very much silent

.

sum wrote:{600?? The police seems to be going the whole hog}

If my understanding is correct. KP took this investigation pretty seriously, and multiple teams were formed. They were sent to all districts in Kerala. The DGP had said that help from all agencies would be seeked. I think the blast was a revelation for the Kerala Police who found how serious the terrorist threat in Kerala is. The commies also had to drop PDP like a hot potato. Yesterday there was a good programme in Asianet News Hour (9pm). The general consensus was pretty much the same:
1. SB and CB CID posting are still considered as useless postings.
2. Intelligence collection is not systematic.
3. Kerala Police is most of the times people centric. Cases gets solved due to efforts of individual officers, rather than an instituitionalised effort.

Ex. Chief Secretary of Kerala did mention that the then Intelligence DGP of K.P, late Jayaram Padikkal had given a good report on future threats for Kerala. And this Jehadi menace was one. C.P Nair said that even the C.M K.Karunakaran thought that the report was a bit of exaggeration but after nearly 15-20 years, it has become true

.

Avinash R · Post by **Avinash R** » 23 Jul 2009 14:57

^
As far as the arrested person is concerned he will be happy that he has got his ticket to jannat after killing kafirs in blore and kozhikode.

Courts may find him guilty but then the proof was provided in a kafir courts. And kafir courts are biased against believers. So another chance to further use this conviction as a recruiting tool. "Innocent muslims are being arrested for no fault of their's" and the only party that will protect muslims is PDP, So vote for us.

In the meantime PDP will use it's political connections to save itself from a ban.

Meanwhile the kerala assembly will pass a resolution requesting the karnataka govt to provide regular ayurvedic massages to him in the jail and condemning the karnataka jails officials for trampling on the human rights of a convicted terrorist.

Another outcome of this trial may be the way in which PDP founder Madani was released after attacks in coimbatore. Similarly even this person may after a few years be set free for lack of conclusive proof of his involvement. He will be given a grand welcome and re-inducted into the party's jehad factory.

Till now nothing has been done to counter the PDP's spread. The mystery of how some people from kerala went all the way to j&k border and fired on security forces and got killed there is not solved yet.

No answers to questions about who indoctrinated them, trained them and sent them to j&k to die a premature death.

The worrying part is we will continue to live among these brainwashed pdp constituents who will always be on the lookout to avenge the "punishment of innocent muslims in false cases" which will ultimately turn small misunderstandings into full blown riots. Case in point being the recent incidents in mysore.

Until the dhimmi mentality of the rulers changes and starts to understand what really is happening and what is the end goal as envisaged by parties like pdp, nothing really will change. More blasts, More deaths, More investigations but No End to the jehad.

shyamd · Post by **shyamd** » 23 Jul 2009 15:18

The Day Bangalore Shook

From petty thief to dreaded terrorist

KOZHIKODE: Halim, the man arrested by the Kochi police on Wednesday in connection with bomb explosions, started off as a small-time thief.

Over the years, he morphed into a vital cog in the terrorist network in the state.

Halim’s was a journey from the PDP to the Majlise Tarbiyyathul Musaleemin (MTM) to the , which is the brandnew avatar of the terrorists in India.

The police had picked him up on several occasions in the recent past, only to let him off for want of any incriminating evidence.

For the police, he was only a petty thief and just a link in a counterfeit currency racket. But, in 1999, Halim was inducted into the terror circuit by his mentor Thadiyantavide Nazir, an accused in the case relating to sending Malayali youths to Kashmir for terror training.

The masterminds of the terrorist groups across the border had already identified Halim as a potential conduit. The lure of money had drawn him to terrorism.

He was an accused in two murders in Kannur city, which had the stamp of extremism on them. Two youths, Vinod and Azad, were murdered for having illicit affair with Muslim women.

Halim had figured in confession statements of dreaded terrorists E T Sainuddeen and Sarfaraz Nawaz, who was picked up by RAW from Oman. Sainuddeen said he had taught Alim how to make IEDs (improvised explosive devices).

Nawaz told the police that he gave Rs 10,000 for Halim’s treatment when he was beaten up by the police for stealing a car at Aluva. The car was stolen “for planting bombs” in Bangalore.

Police officers who had served in Kannur town said they had never thought Halim would become a dreaded terrorist. His family used to ask them to ‘advise’ him every time he was arrested for anti-social activities. Apparently their advice had fallen on deaf ears. It was the link with Nazir that eventually drew Halim to the terror network in the state, which has undeniable links with the ultras across the border.

Halim may hold key to collectorate blast inquiry

THE arrest of Halim, the accused in the Kozhikode twin blasts, is expected to shed more light on the pipe bomb blast at Ernakulam Collectorate. The arrest points to the possibility of anti-national elements operating behind this blast also. Halim, an expert in bomb-making, who had undergone training in explosives in different parts of the country, is suspected to have strong links in the Collectorate blast. The police said that the antinational racket in which Halim was a member, was behind most of the 15 blasts in the state after 1998. It has been further found that Halim had undergone training in IED from Sainudhin. Speaking at the press conference, City Police Commissioner Manoj Abraham said that the blast at the Collectorate was powerful enough to inflict major damages if it was not on the fifth floor of the building.

Forensic reports had indicated that the pipe bomb blast was meticulously planned and was carried out by a well-trained team.

However, there was not a single piece of evidence left for the investigation team, he said.

“We had to start from the scratch. There were not much evidence and no finger-prints on the spot. More than 10 special teams were deployed for probe. He is suspected to have links in the Collectorate blast also ” he said.

shyamd · Post by **shyamd** » 23 Jul 2009 15:42

Ghori to be tried for conspiracy, collecting fun
Vikram Sharma

First Published : 21 Jul 2009 02:30:00 AM IST
Last Updated :

HYDERABAD: Every one in his locality knew him as a `pious’ man who offered `namaz’ five times a day. He was one of the most respected persons within the community going by his knowledge on religious affairs.

But two months prior to September 2002, his house in Kurmaguda in the communally sensitive Saidabad area, was witnessing hectic activity. Several `new faces’ were visiting his house and spending hours together with him and one among them was Adam Suleman Ajmeri. This was when their mission -- to target the famous Akshardham Temple in Gujarat -- was given the final shape.

The Hyderabadi, Shaukatullah Ghori, the alleged financier and one of the key operatives of Lashkar-e-Toiba (LeT) in Riyadh, has been accused of holding several rounds of meetings with Suleman Ajmeri, one of the accused in the terror attack, who was arrested and given death sentence by a Gujarat Court.

Shaukatullah, arrested two days back upon his arrival at Shamshabad airport and taken to Gujarat yesterday, will now be tried in a Gujarat Court for conspiring, planning and collecting funds for terrorists who stormed the Akshardham temple on September 24, 2002 which killed 35 including two NSG personnel and injured over a 100 persons.

Top police sources in Gujarat told Express over telephone that Shaukatullah, popular as Haafiz saheb as he was an Imam in a mosque in Riyadh, had allowed Ajmeri to stay in his house during which both gave the “finishing touch’’ to their mission. Ajmeri, who belongs to Shahpur area of Gujarat, along with two other accused -- Abdul Quayyum alias Mufti Saheb and Chand Khan, was awarded death sentence.

“During interrogation, Ajmeri had revealed the name of Shaukatullah. But before our team could nab him, he fled Hyderabad for Riyadh. Ever since, he was named as an absconding accused in the Akshardham case,’’ sources said.

While Ajmeri returned to Ahmedabad where he received the two Pakistani terrorists of LeT and provided shelter at his house, Shaukatullah, now a 44-year-old, began collecting funds for the ‘cause.’ That Shaukatullah had collected funds to be used to provide logistics to the terrorists who stormed the Temple, was also revealed by Ajmeri before the Gujarat police.

“He raised money in the form of zakat (amount every Muslim has to give for the needy). The amount collected runs into a few lakh of rupees,’’ sources said. In fact, using his contacts in Riyadh, Pakistan and Dubai, he was able to raise money easily. ``He also used the contacts of his brother and most wanted terrorist Farhatullah Ghori, who works for Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM),’’ they said.

Asked whether he disclosed the purpose of his visit to Hyderabad, sources said that so far, he has only been maintaining that his wife was not well.

“He was fully aware that by visiting Hyderabad, he would be inviting trouble as he was already on our radar since long. We are yet to grill him thoroughly to know the purpose of his visit,’’ they said.

The sleuths are also expected to find out whether he had any major plans in mind ahead of Ganesh festival besides recruiting young men and take them abroad.

Sources said that soon after he was caught after alighting from the flight from Oman (WY8351), he did not utter a word and remained calm all through.

A non-bailable warrant is pending against him under POTA in a Gandhinagar Court in Gujarat.

Initial reports says that he came on a flight from Jeddah. Weird and confusing reports. But flight from Oman appears accurate, the flight number matches with Oman Air from Muscat to Hyderabad.

Link

The court offered free legal aid to Ghouri and appointed advocate DG Parmar to take up his case...........

The public prosecutor pleaded that police are yet to find out details of the terrorist link of Ghouri for executing his plan and to get the full names and addresses of conspirators of the attack. So far, police have only the name or surname of most of the absconding persons who were involved in the attack.

Police also have to find out the amount he had sent through hawala for terrorist activities and his Indian contacts as he had been living in Riyadh for a long time. Besides, police have also to find out whether Ghouri was involved in other conspiracies on the directions of ISI. His brother Farhatullah, who, too, is involved in the Akshardham temple attack, is still to be arrested.

Ghouri did not complain of any ill-treatment in the hands of police. "In police records I am an accused, but their behaviour towards me was very cordial," he said.

Ghouri was arrested at the Hyderabad airport on Saturday night when he arrived with his family from Riyadh for the treatment of his wife. He was handed over to the Gujarat police on Sunday morning for his alleged involvement in Akshardham case. After escaping to Riyadh from India, Ghouri used to work as an Imam at a mosque there.

Another article suggesting he was in the UAE for some years.

Ghauri is the eighth person caught out of total 26 accused in the terror attack on September 24, 2002 in which 34 persons lost their lives while 86 others had sustained injuries. Ghauri, a resident of Hyderabad, but who was in the UAE for some years, was wanted in this case ever since the first charge sheet was filed more than six years ago.

After hearing public prosecutor Sudhir Brahmbhatt's argument, court asked Ghauri if he had to say anything. The accused praised Gujarat police for not treating him badly, but expressed concern for his children .

Most articles are saying he was in Riyadh. So we can deduct that the above is incorrect.

ashish raval · Post by **ashish raval** » 23 Jul 2009 16:09

^^ most of the so called Asian stores (paki owned) in UK have charity box and usually everything is priced 1 pence lower than whole number i.e. 3.99 instead of 4 pounds. So naturally anyone who is in receipt of this change one pence will 90% of time put that money in "charity box" thinking that it will go to poor people of pakistan but truth could be that it may be going to charities like JUD which supports LET. UK govt. has no fking idea that all the funding to paki extremists goes via UK only !

sum · Post by **sum** » 23 Jul 2009 17:04

Halim was inducted into the terror circuit by his mentor Thadiyantavide Nazir, an accused in the case relating to sending Malayali youths to Kashmir for terror training.

Any idea on the status of this "mentor"?

ramana · Post by **ramana** » 23 Jul 2009 20:39

Need to create adatabse with all these names. Its so confusing Abu thi, Abu that and now Ghori and Gauri!

Sachin · Post by **Sachin** » 23 Jul 2009 21:29

sum wrote:Any idea on the status of this "mentor"?

The mentor is now supposed to be in Bangladesh, but planning to move to the "mother of all terrorist factories - Pakistan". He is still untraceable by the police and intel agencies.

sum · Post by **sum** » 23 Jul 2009 22:07

Asked whether he disclosed the purpose of his visit to Hyderabad, sources said that so far, he has only been maintaining that his wife was not well.

“He was fully aware that by visiting Hyderabad, he would be inviting trouble as he was already on our radar since long. We are yet to grill him thoroughly to know the purpose of his visit,’’ they said.

Am unable to understand what is happening here..

Was he pushed int a India bound flight by Saudi intel, escorted by RAW on the plane and handed over to the police? (Similar to shri. Nawaz from Oman)
Or was he blackmailed into returning by the SDRE agencies ( by using some family member as bargaining chip etc)?

shyamd · Post by **shyamd** » 24 Jul 2009 04:13

Nothing is clear. But its weird that RAW isn't involved in any interrogation at all. They were involved in all other investigations, in this only IB and police was doing the interrogation. They knew he was on board the flight from Oman, so they may have received information via APIS earlier. Therefore his name could have flashed with immigration, and the agencies would have been alerted. But its weird that Gujarat Police were there at the airport when he was being arrested, so this was definetly pre-planned, it could well be that KSA intel could have passed on the info on what flight and the fact that he has departed etc.

Lets wait for the facts to come out via Praveen Swami or someone else. But one thing is for certain, it seems all this was pre-planned.

Gerard · Post by **Gerard** » 24 Jul 2009 05:56

Maoist real target: police intelligence

A police report has said the main reason why Maoists are systematically killing CPM leaders is to snuff out any attempt by the force to revive its collapsed intelligence network in Lalgarh.

Gerard · Post by **Gerard** » 24 Jul 2009 06:04

No more VIP duty please: NSG

SSridhar · Post by **SSridhar** » 24 Jul 2009 14:24

Confessions of a bomb-maker
Excerpts

The Surat operation was a flop since my son Sarfuddin assembled the IEDs. He was new to this technology and was just learning. He did not assemble them properly.'

chetak · Post by **chetak** » 24 Jul 2009 14:31

Avinash R wrote:^ Again PDP.

Always.

Shameful of karunanidhi to have let him go.

The politicos in Kerala also tried to align with him to gain votes and lost very badly.

sanjaychoudhry · Post by **sanjaychoudhry** » 24 Jul 2009 14:35

Translated from Dainik Jagaran:

“Mission Technology” to Combat Naxals

If Naxals have declared a war on the country, then the government is equally ready to deal with them in the same fashion. The home ministry is working on a plan called “Mission Technology” which has the objective of identifying Maoist hideouts in the thick jungles and flush them out.

The home ministry is planning a massive joint operation against the Maoists after the monsoons. But before that, it is putting a crack team of forces together and working to provide it with the best possible weapons and technology.

A ministry official said: “The confrontation against the Naxals will be on a war scale and we are doing our planning accordingly.” The first challenge is to identify Maoist camps in the jungles.

For this, CRPF entered into an agreement with ISRO last year under which the space agency has been tasked to prepare a high-quality GIS map of the Naxal-affected areas. This will help the force easily identify Maoist hideouts in forests and inaccessible mountains.

Actually, the main problem confronting the para-military forces is that they are unable to discover where the Maoists hide in the jungles. ISRO therefore started satellite mapping of the tough terrain based on the unique needs of the CRPF.

According to sources, ISRO has been quite successful in preparing detailed, high-resolution maps of the entire area. These maps are expected to benefit CRPF and other security forces immensely in their coming war with the Maoists.

Apart from this, the home ministry is not rejecting the possibility of using attack helicopters. Currently, the helicopters that the security forces have are not suited to a ground war. They are vulnerable to small arms fire.

The home ministry has plans to acquire four attack helicopters from abroad which were used in the war in Afghanistan and Serbia. For this, the home ministry has contacted the PMO and the defence ministry.

The security forces have already started training to use advanced de-mining vehicles and armored cars. Instead of carrying SLRs, the CRPF soldiers are now being equipped with AK-series weapons and sophisticated guns such as the MP5.

Sachin · Post by **Sachin** » 24 Jul 2009 15:58

chetak wrote:Shameful of karunanidhi to have let him go.

Abdul Nassar Mahdani if you are not aware was kept securely inside Coimbatore prison for 9 long years as an under trial. This was when Kerala politicians of all colours were trying to get him released. I don't know if TN politicians were also interested in getting him out. Every single provision regarding bails, appeals etc. mentioned in Cr.PC and IPC were used by the police and agencies to keep this fellow behind bars. It is a tough job to dodge the politicians, human rights champions etc. for such a long time. A friend of mine who is an LLB and also in the force explained the tactic used, but it was too complex for a layman like me.

Mahdani remarked that the life experiences he gained from the prison, was much more than what he gained during his life time before that. Perhaps that proves that he should have been sent to the prison right from his Kinter Garden days

.

SSridhar · Post by **SSridhar** » 24 Jul 2009 16:19

Sachin wrote: I don't know if TN politicians were also interested in getting him out.

As Chetak rightly said, Karunanidhi let him go because he wanted votes.

shyamd · Post by **shyamd** » 24 Jul 2009 17:38

Karunanidhi also kindly supplied Madhani with free Ayurvedic treatment if memory serves me correct.

AnimeshP · Post by **AnimeshP** » 24 Jul 2009 19:40

sanjaychoudhry wrote:Translated from Dainik Jagaran:

“Mission Technology” to Combat Naxals

If Naxals have declared a war on the country, then the government is equally ready to deal with them in the same fashion. The home ministry is working on a plan called “Mission Technology” which has the objective of identifying Maoist hideouts in the thick jungles and flush them out.

The home ministry is planning a massive joint operation against the Maoists after the monsoons. But before that, it is putting a crack team of forces together and working to provide it with the best possible weapons and technology.

A ministry official said: “The confrontation against the Naxals will be on a war scale and we are doing our planning accordingly.” The first challenge is to identify Maoist camps in the jungles.

For this, CRPF entered into an agreement with ISRO last year under which the space agency has been tasked to prepare a high-quality GIS map of the Naxal-affected areas. This will help the force easily identify Maoist hideouts in forests and inaccessible mountains.

Actually, the main problem confronting the para-military forces is that they are unable to discover where the Maoists hide in the jungles. ISRO therefore started satellite mapping of the tough terrain based on the unique needs of the CRPF.

According to sources, ISRO has been quite successful in preparing detailed, high-resolution maps of the entire area. These maps are expected to benefit CRPF and other security forces immensely in their coming war with the Maoists.

Apart from this, the home ministry is not rejecting the possibility of using attack helicopters. Currently, the helicopters that the security forces have are not suited to a ground war. They are vulnerable to small arms fire.

The home ministry has plans to acquire four attack helicopters from abroad which were used in the war in Afghanistan and Serbia. For this, the home ministry has contacted the PMO and the defence ministry.

The security forces have already started training to use advanced de-mining vehicles and armored cars. Instead of carrying SLRs, the CRPF soldiers are now being equipped with AK-series weapons and sophisticated guns such as the MP5.

Well .. not sure if this is a mis-interpretation of "armoured helicopter" but IMHO it would be a pretty wrong move on our Govt.'s behalf to introduce "attack helicopters" in anti-Naxal operations.
Introducing airborne firepower into a law-and-order problem and against its own citizen is a Paki speciality . We would be well advised not to go down than route.

sanjaychoudhry · Post by **sanjaychoudhry** » 24 Jul 2009 20:03

Well .. not sure if this is a mis-interpretation of "armoured helicopter" but IMHO it would be a pretty wrong move on our Govt.'s behalf to introduce "attack helicopters" in anti-Naxal operations.
Introducing airborne firepower into a law-and-order problem and against its own citizen is a Paki speciality . We would be well advised not to go down than route.

Maoism is no longer a law and order problem. It has become a full-fledged armed rebellion against the state. "Outbreak of internal armed rebellion" is one of the conditions which justifies imposition of emergency and suspension of fundamental rights in the Indian constitution.

Armed might of the state is meant to be used against all enemies of India, especially when the survivial of the state itself is threatened in huge swathes of territory.

Not using armed helicopters inside the territory of India is mere idealism. If the monthly slaughter of police men can be stopped in dense jungles by the use of attack helicopters, I am all for them. It is not as if the helicopters are going to be used for attacking settled areas. They are meant to be used in thick jungles with no population where policemen are easy targets for ambushes. They can be deployed for strafing Maoist camps from a distance. Imagine how many police lives this will save.

I don't think slaughter of policemen is a fair trade for enjoying the idealism of not using armed helicopters in thick jungles. All insertion and extraction of CRPF soliders in jungles should be by armed helicopters and walking long distances over jungle trails should be avoided at all costs.

Fighting in the jungles on foot is nothing but fighting on terms laid down by the Maoists. Maoists are playing to their strenght. There is no reason why we should humour them. Force multipliers in the shape of rocket and grenade launchers, mortars, sniper rifles, armoured cars and armed helicopters are absolutely necessary to fight the Maoists, especially when they are getting strategic guidance and monetary support from the Whites.

AnimeshP · Post by **AnimeshP** » 24 Jul 2009 20:15

sanjaychoudhry wrote:
Well .. not sure if this is a mis-interpretation of "armoured helicopter" but IMHO it would be a pretty wrong move on our Govt.'s behalf to introduce "attack helicopters" in anti-Naxal operations.
Introducing airborne firepower into a law-and-order problem and against its own citizen is a Paki speciality . We would be well advised not to go down than route.
Maoism is no longer a law and order problem. It has become a full-fledged armed rebellion against the state. "Outbreak of internal armed rebellion" is one of the conditions which justifies imposition of emergency and suspension of fundamental rights in the Indian constitution.

Armed might of the state is meant to be used against all enemies of India, especially when the survivial of the state itself is threatened in huge swathes of territory.

Not using armed helicopters inside the territory of India is mere idealism. If the monthly slaughter of police men can be stopped in dense jungles by the use of attack helicopters, I am all for them. It is not as if the helicopters are going to be used for attacking settled areas. They are meant to be used in thick jungles with no population where policemen are easy targets for ambushes. They can be demployed for strafing Maoist camps from a distance. Imagine how many police lives this will save.

Fighting in the jungles on foot is nothing but fighting on terms laid down by the Maoists. Force multipliers in the shape of rocket and granade launchers, mortars and armed helicopters are absolutely necessary to fight the Maoists, especially when they are getting strategic guidance and monetary support by Whites.

So pray do tell me .. If the approach of strafing the maoists does not work .. what will be the next step? Using MKIs to bomb them or using artillery for shelling (similar to what the pakis did in Swat) ?

Like I said .. using armored helicopters (which can withstand small arms fire) is absolutely correct ... Same with using force multipliers (ISRO maps, UAVs, mine protective vehicles etc.) to reduce Police casualties.

But using attack helicopters (which you so eloquently said should be used for strafing) is a big mistake (IMHO) ... We have fought other insurgencies (North-east, J&K) which too had a pretty dense jungle terrain without having to resort to offensive airpower. I don't think any insurgency has ever been crushed with the use of offensive air-power (strafing, bombing etc).

Also, you will end-up raising the profile of the conflict by introducing such elements. But then I am just a keyboard warrior. Maybe the experienced gurus in COIN like RayC can give us a better insight on the merits/de-merits of using such assets in anti-Naxal ops.

shyamd · Post by **shyamd** » 24 Jul 2009 21:43

Halimhad LeT Connections

Express News Service
First Published : 23 Jul 2009 03:11:00 AM IST
Last Updated :

KOCHI: Halim is just the tip of the iceberg.Further probing has revealed shocking evidence of cross-border terrorist links including with the Lashkar-e- Toiba (LeT). A top official with the special probe team has confirmed that Halim had links with the LeT and it was through Sarfaraz Nawaz and Thadiyantavide Nazir that he got in touch with these militant outfits.

“Halim had gone to Dubai and Muscat for anti-national purposes. It has been confirmed that Halim went to Dubai four times. It was Nawaz who connected him with LeT.

He met LeT officials in Dubai all four times he went there,’’ a top source said.

Sources said that Nawaz, whose LeT links have already been established, was active in the banned student movement SIMI. Both Nazir and Halim were active in the PDP during the 1991-92 period and Nazir was a student wing leader of the PDP. Both operated together on many instances including the Kozhikode twin blasts.

It has been confirmed that Nazir was a top leader of the LeT in south India. It’s suspected that he was paid to recruit people to the outfit.

The police said on Wednesday that Halim had worked abroad including in some Gulf countries, and that he used a passport with a different address. It was in January 2009 that he returned to the state.

shyamd · Post by **shyamd** » 25 Jul 2009 21:12

Court sends Halim to police custody

Halim, who hails from Kannur, has been named third accused in the case. Other accused are Thadiyantavide Nazir, prime accused, who has been absconding; Jaleel, who is now in Bangalore police custody for his involvement in the Bangalore blasts case; and Shahaz and Azhar, who the police suspect to have fled to the Gulf.

Officials of the Research and Analysis Wing and the Intelligence Bureau interrogated Halim before he was produced before the court. Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh police officials will question him. He has been accused in a number of cases, including of two murders and counterfeiting.

The Anti-Terror Cell of the State police has said it has evidence of Halim’s links with Lashkar-e-Taiba and the Indian Mujahideen. He was an active member of the People’s Democratic Party earlier, the police said.

Gerard · Post by **Gerard** » 26 Jul 2009 01:17

Binayak Sen for launching peace initiatives

Avinash R · Post by **Avinash R** » 26 Jul 2009 11:32

Gerard wrote:Binayak Sen for launching peace initiatives

Dr. Sen said that when he went to jail he had been anonymous, but when he walked out he was surrounded by photographers and journalists in a number he had never seen before. “Now that I have lost anonymity, I know it was an asset and hope to get it back within seven or eight months,” he said.

So it's back to the jungles to roast human flesh and eat it with maoist brothers and sisters. Police have violated his human rights by not feeding him human flesh but not to worry maoist brothers will be ready with a fresh kill.

sanjaychoudhry · Post by **sanjaychoudhry** » 26 Jul 2009 11:55

Binayak Sen is a church / CIA asset and has to be dealt with ruthlessly. The same forces are behind the Maoists. There are some supereme court judges who have been subverted and they are being used to grant judicial protection to overground supporters of Maoists funded by the West. These judges deserve to be impeached for treason.

Sachin · Post by **Sachin** » 26 Jul 2009 13:47

shyamd wrote:Karunanidhi also kindly supplied Madhani with free Ayurvedic treatment if memory serves me correct.

That is true. But there is a subtle difference. Mahdani tried to get out of the prison stating that he has medical problems and be shifted to a hospital. The judge ruled that Mahdani should be given medical treatment (ayurvedic or the English medicine), but the doctor would come to prison to give him the treatment

. The Tamil nadu Govt. agreed that such a treatment can be given to him within prison premises itself

.

SSridhar · Post by **SSridhar** » 27 Jul 2009 17:10

3 held guilty for the Mumbai 2003 serial blasts

Six years after twin blasts rocked the Gateway of India and Zaveri Bazaar in 2003 killing 52 people, three persons were on Monday convicted by a special court for the crime.

Special Prevention of Terrorism Act (POTA) judge M.R. Puranik convicted Ashrat Ansari (32), Hanif Sayed Anees (46) and his wife Fehmida Sayed (43) who face a maximum sentence of death penalty for their role in carrying out the blasts which also left around 100 injured.

The court said it will hear on August 4 the arguments of the defence and the prosecution regarding the quantum of sentence to be awarded to the convicted persons.

The trio have been convicted under various sections of the IPC for conspiracy, murder and attempt to murder, sections of POTA, Explosive Substances Act and Prevention of Damage to Public Property Act.

The convicts listened carefully to the judge while the verdict was being pronounced and remained silent.

Three more persons had been arrested for their alleged involvement in the blasts, but one of them turned approver in the case.

Two other accused, Mohammed Ansari Ladoowala and Mohammed Hasan Batterywala, were discharged from the case by POTA court after Supreme Court upheld a POTA review committee report that there was no case against the duo

"One of the accused who later became an approver has said the conspiracy to carry out the blasts was hatched by terror group Lashkar-e-Taiba in Dubai. In this conspiracy meeting, Pakistani nationals owing allegiance to LeT were also present and one of the objectives of the blasts was to create terror in Mumbai," the special public prosecutor said.

The 16-year-old daughter of Hanif Sayed and Fehmida was also arrested for her alleged involvement in aiding her parents but was subsequently discharged since she was a minor, Mr. Nikam said. {This young girl should be shown the right path by the government; otherwise, the brainwashing she would have received all these years plus the detah sentence her parents would get, might have deleterious effects on her}

Jamal K. Malik · Post by **Jamal K. Malik** » 28 Jul 2009 16:56

Action plan to strengthen police, intelligence

r_subramanian · Post by **r_subramanian** » 29 Jul 2009 01:29

Prophet's picture in UP book raises storm
I am not sure if this is the right place for the following news item. Moderators, please remove it (or move it to another topic), if deemed necessary.

ALLAHABAD: A book titled, 'Udayimaan Bhartiya Samaj Mein Shikshak' (Teachers in Emerging India), has raised hackles of Uttar Pradesh's political class as well as Muslims for carrying a picture of Prophet Mohammed. Islam doesn't permit publication of pictures or portrait the Prophet.
...
Meanwhile, former state minister and senior SP leader Ujjawal Raman Singh expressed dismay. He said SP workers would take to the streets and also raise the issue in the Assembly if the photograph {!} was not removed.

Prophet's picture in UP book raises storm

Avinash R · Post by **Avinash R** » 29 Jul 2009 18:06

26/11 panel severely indicts Maharashtra govt
S Balakrishnan, TNN 29 July 2009, 08:38am IST
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/NEWS ... 832287.cms

MUMBAI: The high-level committee appointed to inquire into the 26/11 terror attack on Mumbai has severely indicted the Maharashtra government and possibly that is the reason why the latter is refusing to make the report public. Nine Pakistani terrorists arrived by boat to Mumbai and executed a massacre at several places.

TOI has accessed the report, prepared by retired bureaucrat Ram Pradhan and former RAW official V Balachandran, and is making the relevant portions public in the larger interest of the security of Mumbai and its people.

On page 74, the panel has observed: "Despite receiving as many as six alerts about the sea route likely to be used by terrorists, no significant steps had been taken by the state government to beef up coastal security by having regular interaction with the Coast Guard. It was well-known that the patchwork joint patrolling started from 1993 had not worked. Nothing other than convening meetings seem to have been achieved as evident from the information given by DGP."

"The DGP (A N Roy was in the post at that time) told the committee that the coastal security plan introduced by the government of India since 1993 was not working well because several agencies had to contribute to its success." Local cops have to cover a distance of 12 nautical miles from the coast, the Coast Guard 12 to 200 nautical miles and the rest is covered by the Navy. But all the agencies "dropped out". "The Navy agreed to provide eight ships for coastal patrolling (but) withdrew in 2006 by establishing a quick response team (QRT) in Murud and Ratnagiri. This was not adequate," the panel noted.

The report states: "In the wake the 2006 serial train blasts, the Maharashtra government in the home department formed a ‘study group’ comprising retired senior police and military officials on October 31, 2006, ‘for suggesting the security of Mumbai and other major cities in the state’. It was expected to submit its report in three months. But the first meeting was called only on January 27, 2007 by the then commissioner of police who was the convenor. The group has not yet submitted its report."

‘‘The committee found total confusion in the processing of intelligence alerts at the level of the state government and the police. Both the additional chief secretary (home) and principal secretary (home) gave in writing to the committee that they had not received any intelligence alerts from the (Union) ministry of home affairs (MHA)."

shyamd · Post by **shyamd** » 30 Jul 2009 04:50

Sleeper cells keep security agencies on their toes

shyamd · Post by **shyamd** » 30 Jul 2009 17:31

A technological dilemma for terrorists

KOZHIKODE: Extremists operating in the country are in an acute technological dilemma: On the one hand, they find it difficult to resist the temptation of using facilities like mobile phones, and on the other, liberal use of this technology has caused them irreparable damage.

The leadership of Left-wing extremists and Islamists has repeatedly cautioned their cadres and middle-level leaders against the unchecked use of mobile phones. But most often these warnings go unheeded, leading to the arrest of the cadres and the leaders, and vital information leaking.Security agencies find it handy to trace suspects by locating the concerned mobile towers and collecting call data from service providers.

According to documents available with the 'Express', the probe into the 2008 Gujarat blasts made much headway after the tracing of mobile numbers. An Airtel number was found in use from January 14 to 17, only to receive incoming calls. It was suspected to be the number of a senior SIMI leader who was in the state to oversee arrangements for the blasts.

One Farooq, a suspect in the Surat bomb case, used 24 different handsets between May and August in 2008.

Sarfaraz Nawaz, an accused in the Bangalore blast case, told the police that his bosses in Pakistan had asked him not to use mobile phones.

However, investigators came to know that his accomplice, Nazeer, had fled to Bangladesh from calls Nawaz had received on his mobile.

Sachin · Post by **Sachin** » 30 Jul 2009 21:36

shyamd wrote:A technological dilemma for terrorists

To give K.P its due, they have put in some good efforts to look for leads in crimes using the 'trace the cell phone' tactic. A special police station to look into such cases have been set up at K.P H.Q in Thiruvananthapuram. There is also good in-house training programmes to spread the knowledge about such investigation techniques to the various ranks in the police. There was major bank dacoity which happened in Malappuram Dt., and the first clues of the perpetrators were taken by using the mobile networks. The police got hold of all the culprits in record time.

Arun_S · Post by **Arun_S** » 01 Aug 2009 00:46

Court drops MCOCA against Malegaon blast accused

Fri, Jul 31, 2009, Toral Varia CNN-IBN

NOT RIGHT: Court observed that applying MCOCA on the accused was incorrect

Mumbai: Investigators in the Malegaon blast case have suffered a major legal reverse after a special court dropped charges under the Maharashtra anti-terror law Maharashtra Control of Organised Crime Act (MCOCA) against 11 accused, including Sadhvi Pragya Singh Thakur and Lt. Col. Prasad SP Purohit.

The court also ordered the trial will be heard in a regular Nashik court and that the accused can now become eligible for regular bail.

Father of prime accused Sadhvi Pragya Singh Thakur, Chandrapal Singh, distributed sweets at his home shortly after the Nashik special court's orders in an overt display of what the defence called vindication of their stand.

For the investigators, it couldn't have been worse news.

The special sessions court directed applying MCOCA on the accused was incorrect and hence the trial needed to be conducted by a regular court. It is a fallout of what many believe was a hasty and ill-thought out step of investigating officers.

MCOCA requires that at least one of the accused should have chargesheets in two previous cases to qualify as part of an organised crime syndicate.

The prosecution applied MCOCA on the basis of cases against accused Rakesh Dhawade after his arrest in the Malegaon blast.

Post Dhawade's arrest in the Malegaon case, he was charged with blasts in Jalna and Parbhani as well.

But there was no case against him prior to his arrest in the Malegaon case.

He was discharged from the Parbhani blasts, weakening the MCOCA case further.

"I think MCOCA is a very drastic legislation. It denies a person of his personal liberty and indiscriminate use of MCOCA in such a fashion will cause more harm that the harm caused by gangsters," said Shrikant Shivade, lawyer for Lt Col Purohit.

"For the application of MCOCA in any case the precondition is that at the time of commission of offence there should be two chargesheets prior to that against the accused person of a particular severe nature regarding which the court should have taken a cognizance," sadhvi's lawyer Navin Chomal said.

An embarrassed police have now decided to appeal against the special court's order.

"We are challenging this order in the High Court and we are confident that we will get a relief. Otherwise also our case is very strong and we have sufficient evidence in the case," claimed Anti-Terrorism Squad chief KP Raghuvanshi.

The special court has allowed a four week period for the police to appeal - a time it badly needs to salvage this serious setback to their arguments.

The Malegaon blast investigations were the first instance of an official probe which charged a Hindu terrorist group with involvement in serial blasts.

It is a case which put 26/11 martyr Hemant Karkare under unprecedented limelight and even controversy.

The special court's order now mean the police need a quick turnaround to prevent the accused from becoming eligible for regular bail.

ramana · Post by **ramana** » 01 Aug 2009 00:58

Now we understand the stress on Sri Karkare. He found nothing to charge them with under the MCOCOA yet the minister R. Patil was insisting on that till the elections are over.

But note the Judge hasnt still granted bail to the serving Lt Col. while it was granted in case of the Kerala accused.

Sridhar · Post by **Sridhar** » 01 Aug 2009 05:04

CISF cover for Infosys

http://www.hindu.com/2009/08/01/stories ... 301800.htm

Some observations:

1. From the picture, these personnel look better kitted out than the standard CISF personnel. The helmets as well as the uniforms look much better than the existing ones. Is the private sector company responsible for their equipment (weapons, protective gear, uniforms etc)? Or does it just reflect overall upgradation of equipment.

2. I am not sure it is a good idea to provide CISF protection to private establishments, at least under current procedures. Yes, many of them constitute vital economic infrastructure. But the discretion of who to provide CISF protection to and who not to (i.e. the assessment of what constitutes vital infrastructure and what does not) is left entirely to the CISF, without any guidelines of how this should be decided. An enterprising officer will find that this is a pretty profitable provision.

3. I fear for the dilution of standards of the organization if it is tasked with the security of hundreds if not thousands of units across the country. The organization is being tasked with a variety of new tasks of vital importance over the last few years - airports, embassies abroad, urban transit systems. These tasks require a significant ramp-up of the organization - the addition of private sector entities will only make this more challenging.

4. You could imagine that money could be used to get the best personnel to protect a Reliance facility, rather than an atomic power station. Government installations would start becoming punishment postings for the personnel. Already, the most coveted airports are Delhi, Mumbai, Bangalore and Hyderabad. Not because of location, but because they are privately owned, with their associated 'benefits'.

5. It seems as if the fees for deploying the CISF is essentially the salaries of personnel deployed there. There isn't even an administrative fee for funding a part of the adminstrative infrastructure and personnel required in addition to the personnel actually deployed at the site. This seems quite strange to me.

The CISF is a premier organization, with unique capabilities (which armed force has personnel trained in anti-terrorist operations, disaster relief, perimeter security, fire-fighting and VIP-protection?). It is a vital national resource and it should be used with care.