Address to the Nation.

5 Questions On Malegaon Blast Case. (2006)

2011-11-23T21:42:00.000+09:00

The bail for Malegaon blast 2006 accused raises several questions pertaining to counter terrorism approach. I have the following questions in my mind:

1) Why were the fake people arrested & made to “confess”? Was it done due to media pressure or to impress political bosses?

2) Considering this case, I am inclined to ask whether accused arrested in other cases of terrorism during the tenure of concerned officials are genuine or not?

3) If genuine accused are not caught, then they would commit more offences. Were the officials not aware of such grave implications?

4) Now what will government do so to deter such investigators fooling (& jeopardizing the lives of ) public again?

5) Fake persons were made accused not just by ATS, but also there were certain agencies acting behind the curtains. Do we need to still trust them?

Dawood Ibrahim & Co relocated in China.

2011-11-20T18:28:00.000+09:00

Underworld Don Dawood Ibrahim alongwith one of his brothers Musatkeem Kaskar & lieutenant Chota Shakeel has relocated to China recently. Their identities have been changed. However, Anees Ibrahim, Tiger Memon & other associates of Dawood are still in Pakistan.

Dawood’s shifting to Pakistan has been facilitated by Pakistan’s ISI. Last July ISI chief Ahmed Suja Pasha went to China and among several things which were discussed one was of relocation of Dawood Ibrahim.

It is said that Dawood & others have been relocated near Guangzhou, a city which is around 2 hrs drive from Hongkong. A large number of Pakistanis reside in Gunagzhou & have businesses related to electronic gadgets, hotels etc.

It might be a temporary relocation as after the Abottabad incident, Pakistan didn’t want to face similar embarrassment. The growing acrimony between US & Pakistan led to the fears that Dawood’s presence in Pakistan could get exposed.

Getting Dawood from China will be as impossible for India as it was from Pakistan. Post Abottabad incident Pakistan & China are strengthening their ties. Considering the kind of relationship India has with China, Dawood will feel as secured in China as he was in Pakistan. China will never hand him over to India and will never accept Dawood is on its soil.

Senior Police officials in Mumbai have neither denied, nor confirmed this information.

Regret killing journalist J.Dey: Chota Rajan.

2011-11-16T20:57:00.002+09:00

Chota Rajan called up from number +3444 at 1: 54 pm. He said the following in conversation with me:

1) I will kill Dawood Ibrahim if he comes to India. He said this in response to the interview given by Parvez Musharaf to an Indian news channel.

2) I regret killing journalist J.Dey. ( On my question-Why did you kill J.Dey?)

- J.Dey was writing many articles against me, so once I called him up & asked politely if he had some personal problem with me. He denied, but said that he is going to London & I should meet him there.

- When J.Dey went to London, I got a call from my London based informer named Usman. Usman warned me that I should not go to London to meet J.Dey as he was meeting Chota Shakeel people there. This made me suspicious.

- After returning from London J.Dey spoke to me and asked why I didn’t meet him. When I said I couldn’t come for some reason, he told that soon he is going to Phillipines & I should meet him there.

- Meanwhile he continued writing against me…like my gang has become weak, I am sick, my loyal people have left me etc. All such writings of J.Dey angered me.

- He also gave undue credit to Santosh Shetty for killing Bharat Nepali which was actually my brainwork.

- Hence, I developed an impression that he had started working for Dawood gang. I tried to convince him before killing, but he didn’t listen.

- I am not sure whether he really was close to Dawood gang...but his writings made me feel like that.

- But now I regret killing him. I should have ignored what he wrote about me. Journalists are free to write anything about anybody. I shouldnt have done that…but whatever has happened has happened...there is no point in discussing that episode.

Mumbai Attacks : 59 hours of death.

2011-10-16T19:27:00.005+09:00

9 pm is a good pack up time for the city that never sleeps. So, I had finished work and wanted to meet a ‘source’ for an informal meeting. Around 9.30 pm on the night of 26^th November, I had caught a taxi from Mohammad Ali road for CST railway station. The cab would have hardly moved a few metres when an informer phoned me to tell that there was firing at the Leopold Café in Colaba area of South Mumbai. He said that it seemed like a scuffle between a few groups as a result of which two people had started firing at everyone in the cafe. Around 100 rounds had been fired already. 100 rounds!! I got a little worried and concerned. The shootouts during gang-wars in Mumbai were not used-to experiencing 100 rounds of fire. Mostly the shooters would escape after firing 5-6 bullets. It looked like something other than a gang-war to me. I immediately phoned the bureau and hollered for an OB Van and a reporter to be deployed at the Leopold café and ordered my cab-driver to steer me to the spot.

On the way, the first default action was to call up the regional Deputy Commissioner of Police Vishwas Nagre Patil to confirm the news but his phone was off the hook. As the taxi neared the MRA Marg Police Station, just before Crawford market, I saw a few armed policemen running towards a police van and sitting in it. I assumed that they were being sent off to Colaba too.

Just ahead of the police station at the MRA Marg is Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus railway station. I heard some rat-tat-tat sounds coming from the direction of CST, however dismissed them for firecracker sounds. But as my taxi moved closer, not only did the noise become more clearly audible but also more alarming and cautioning. The moment I crossed the main entrance of CST, I was shocked to see the scene in front of me. Hundreds of people were running in different directions. Some had huddled up on the sides of the main road. I could hear loud screams. This is when I understood that the rat-tat-tat sounds were not that of firecrackers but of bullets. Just then a friend called up to inform that an incident of firing had been reported at the Oberoi Hotel at Nariman Point. Now my doubt was cleared .Mumbai had been attacked by a group of terrorists and they were targeting crowded areas and the important spots of the city.

As I moved forward, I observed that the road from Regal Cinema to Leoplod Café was jam-packed. I surrendered my taxi at Regal Cinema and started walking towards Leopold’s. A loud furore had fired up outside the café. Blood had splattered on the roads. Some people wailed and abused the police authorities, others blamed the government. I saw a set of people carrying dead bodies and a few others helped in rescuing the victims. The scenario inside the café was scarier. Blood stained bullet shells lay on the floor with scattered tables, chairs and broken alcohol and soft drink bottles. Bullet marks on the walls of the café terrified me. I had been to Leopold’s a couple of times in the past with a few friends. It’s a bustling place with a power to attract many-a –crowd, but the sight in front of me was making it difficult to comprehend if this was the same café I had visited in the past.

By this time my colleague, reporter Sachin Bhide had reached the spot with a cameraperson. First and foremost, we tried to probe the happenings at the cafe from all possible eye-witnesses and asked them if they could share whatever they had seen on camera. On their consent, we took their bytes and shot a walkthrough describing the scene. The eyewitnesses told us that two men of age 22-23 attacked the café. They had bags on their backs and both attacked from guns that looked like AK-47s. They had mostly attacked foreign tourists and had stormed in the direction of the Taj Mahal Hotel.

In the direction of the Taj? Would they be upto something similar there as well? I ran with Sachin and his cameraperson towards the Taj Hotel which is just a lane behind Leopold Café. I had directed the Ob Van to situate near the Taj as we had to uplink the footage we had recorded at Leoplod café to the head office in Noida. I found the Ob van parked at the Apollo Bunder side of the Taj. I handed over the tape to the Ob engineer, asked him to send the footage to Noida and ran towards the main entrance of the Taj. There was silence at the main gate. Neither were the Sikh door attendants visible at the foyer nor was noticeable the usual energy that buzzed at the entrance of this grand heritage hotel. It looked lifeless. I had suspected that if the terrorists had attacked the hotel, then an equivalent commotion and chaos would be obvious. But there was complete silence here. However, a police van was placed a little ahead of the main gate from which constant sounds of wireless communication could be heard. So, to end the mystery about a possible attack, I decided to open the glass door of the main entrance and was shocked out of my wits. The reception area was soaked in blood. Dead bodies lied scattered in all directions, mostly of foreigners. There were two dead bodies in the passage which connects the old Taj with the new Taj. I also spotted three hotel staffers in their pure white-recently turned-red uniforms among the heap of dead that lied on the floor. It was palpable that this too was the act of the same assailants. I asked my cameraman to start rolling. But he did not have a tape. He had only brought one tape with him when he had hurriedly rushed to Colaba, the same tape which we had given to the Ob engineer after recording the episode at Café Leopold. I asked the cameraman and reporter Sachin Bhide to stay near the main gate and decided to bring the tape back from ob van myself. Meanwhile, I received phone calls from eye witnesses and familiar police officers to learn that episodes of firing were taking place at CST and the Oberoi hotel too.

While returning from the ob, I ran close to the walls of the old Taj. Suddenly an explosion rocked the building. The terrorists had thrown a hand-grenade in my direction followed seconds later by another. This time it was accompanied with 3 rounds of firing. I escaped the splinters of the grenade by inches but my spine felt the heat of the flare-up. This was the scariest moment of the night for me. Just then, I received a call from the Noida Office to give a phono –a phone account of the firings and related episodes in Mumbai. All my fears, tension, anger and sorrow faded out instantly as now, huge work pressures gripped me. What became clearer to my mind and preoccupied me for the rest of the night was that Mumbai had witnessed a huge crisis and I had to commit to my work and be able to deliver the best coverage. As the bureau chief, I had twin responsibility of co-ordinating with all my reporters along with covering the terror attacks at the Taj. All reporters of the bureau were asked to report back to work. Some had taken a u-turn on their own after they had learnt of the on-goings. I received a great deal of help in co-ordinating the bureau from Rajesh Kumar at the assignment desk of Mumbai. He was constantly in touch with all reporters.

Finally, I reached the main gate of the Taj tower with the tape. By now a big police van with over 20 policemen had reached the Taj. They had instructed my cameraman and reporter Sachin to move away from the hotel. Other news channels, some print- photographers had arrived and a couple of ambulances had begun backing up at the Taj. We re-located ourselves at the parking lot and started capturing the visuals of the haulage of the dead bodies. Suddenly another grenade was lobbed and this time the vibration appeared to come from the south-western side of the old Taj. This was the same side of the hotel where our Ob van was parked and I learnt that the bomb had exploded just 10 metres away from the van. I ran towards the van. The driver and ob engineer were trembling in fear .I told them to stand away from the van and only when a reporter needed to uplink his or her footage should they go near the van. At this time, reports of a blast in a taxi in Wadibunder near Mumbai Port had come in. 3 people had died and 10 had been injured in this explosion. Just later, a low-intensity blast was reported in a taxi in Vile Parle area of suburban Mumbai. I deployed reporter Mayur Parikh to go for the blast at Vile parle and asked reporter Mangesh Chivate to cover the Wadibunder blast case.

In another phono, I updated the viewers of Star News- “By now it is clear that Mumbai has been attacked by a group of terrorists. The assailants have targeted crowded areas of the city. There are reports of firing at CST railway station, Kama Hospital and Oberoi hotel and information regarding low intensity bomb blasts in Wadibunder and Vile parle is also trickling in. At the moment I’m reporting from the Taj Mahal hotel in Colaba where a group of terrorists has killed many people after slaughtering diners at the Leoplod café. I have seen over half a dozen dead bodies in the blood filled reception area of the Taj. A total of the number of dead cannot be estimated at the moment. The terrorists are still present in the hotel. I can hear alternate sounds of firing and bombings from within the hotel. Police officials have reached the spot and victims are being rescued.”

Eventually the Bomb Squad of the Mumbai Police reached the Taj and started investigating the surrounding area with sniffer-dogs. We had shifted to the area across the Taj where everyday; thousands of pigeons are fed by tourists and visitors. We perched next to a tree. The dog reached the tree after sniffing the nearby bushes and cars. It barked and sat next to the tree alerting the members of the bomb squad. We detected a black polythene. The dog had indicated the presence of a bomb in the polythene. We were asked to move away immediately. The area was cordoned off as the bomb squad prepared to deactivate the bomb. This illustrated that the terrorists had planned their moves very cleverly. They had known that hotel would be enveloped by police officials in no time. And so, they had planted a timer-bomb outside the hotel to slay a good number of policemen..

Because of the incoming phone-calls and the anxiety to capture the scene at the hotel,

I never realised the gravity of my own circumstances even when I stood next to a bomb. This was the second time I had escaped death in half an hour. There would have been no trace of me had the bomb exploded. The bomb was disabled, but a question that kept crawling in my head was that how did a bomb reach the main entrance of the Taj if the terrorists had entered the hotel from its back side? To find out, I had to wait till the next day.

Meanwhile, the presence of the police force outside the hotel had started increasing. I could sense that our ob van would be in police field within no time making it difficult for us to reach the van and uplink footage. I decided to move the van to a place which was neither too close nor too far from the Taj. Such a spot was the Gateway of India. I asked the ob van to be moved there. Within a few minutes, I had realised the importance of taking this decision at the right time as now the terrorists had reached an upper floor of the building and started tossing grenades where the OB had been parked earlier. Eventually the hotel was enveloped by the police from all directions. It would have been very difficult for a reporter to reach the ob van had we reserved it in the same side of the hotel. Whereas, after repositioning the ob at the gateway, we could give live output of the hotel, in a wide frame. Seeing us, a few more channels moved their ob vans next to ours.

We were hoping that the Mumbai police would soon get the hotel out of the tentacles of the terrorists. Due to the constant co-ordination with all reporters of the bureau and repeated chats, updates, phonos and walkthroughs, I had not kept track of time. Time had flown.

Reporter Ganesh Thakur got to the OB van after covering the attacks at CST railway station. He updated me on the superiorly pathetic site at the railway station. He shared that the terrorists had first fired at the platforms meant for mail expresses and then proceeded to target hundreds of innocents at the local train platforms. Ganesh and his cameraman Bhupendra had captured the pandemonium at the CST from the over bridge above the local platforms till a few bullets struck the indicator hanging a few inches above their heads as a result of which the video camera had slipped from Bhupenda’s hands. Two terrorists raced in their direction when Ganesh decided to leave the spot and re-locate themselves at a school called Anjum-E-Islam and continued shooting the incident. While listening to this heart-quaking story, I received a call from a doctor friend at the Bombay hospital. “Jitendra, hear me out, some ex-police commissioner of Kolhapur named Kamat has been shot dead.”

“Not Kamat, he’s Ashok Kamte and he’s presently the additional commissioner of Mumbai Police.. .but is he really dead? Do you know what you are saying?”

“Yes dear, his dead body is in front of me, a bullet pierced his brain.”

This call sent shivers down my spine. I didn’t want to believe what I’d just heard. I was disheartened. I’d last seen Kamte when he released tear-gas at the protesting MNS workers who disapproved the arrest of Raj Thackeray, a regional political leader who thrives on linguistic politics. I broke the news of his death to the Noida assignment desk with a very heavy heart and gave a phono on the channel declaring him dead. As I mourned Kamte, Mayank Bhagwat rang me up to astonish me with another bewildering report.

“ Jitu bhai, (brother Jitendra) its being suspected that Mr.Salaskar has been shot dead…and to add to the unfolding tragedy, I have heard that he was not alone, ATS chief Hemant Karkare has been killed too.”

“What are you talking? Are the terrorists capable of killing the ATS chief of the city? I don’t believe it, please cross-check, only then can we break this news.”

Within a few minutes Mayank called again “Jitu bhai the reports are true, Karkare Sir is no more and Salaskar has been killed too. I have informed Noida office.”

I was shaking uncontrollably… I could not believe how three senior police officers of Mumbai police were killed in a matter of few minutes. The last I had met Vijay Salaskar was a few months back at my own wedding reception. I recalled that he was drenched in sweat when he had entered my reception party with a bouquet in his hands. “Jitendra, I’m sorry dear, I got late. I had got caught up with work. There was a lot of traffic on the way due to Raj Thackeray’s rally.” He had also said that he didn’t want to eat and had only savoured an ice-cream that night. The last photograph in my wedding album is with him. I remembered that photograph a couple of times that night.

A few months after my marriage, I had spoken to Vijay Salaskar on phone when after the dismissal of encounter specialist Pradeep sharma, I had filed a special report on the existing gang war within the Mumbai police. This was the last time that I ever heard his voice. He was sounding upset and had requested me to reduce the frequency of the telecast of my report. In my report I had highlighted the existing ‘groupism’ within Mumbai police and that how one clan was another’s enemy. One of these groups was headed by Inspector Pradeep Sharma and the other by Salaskar himself. Both were good friends, started their careers together and had worked jointly for many years. But soon after, they had become bitter enemies. Pradeep Sharma alias Baba had been a successful encounter specialist with a monstrous number of 112 encounters to his credit. He had qualified the police force entrance test together with Salaskar alias Maharaj in 1983 and was appointed sub-inspector. They worked together in the early 90’s, carried out several encounters and arrrested many criminals. But this friendship was not destined to last forever. Differences cropped up between them to the extent that they separated and made their own camps, killed each others’ informers and sent close aides of one another behind bars. This war between the two officers had percolated deep into the system that each had a bunch of his favourite crime reporters too. Some journalists were dear to Sharma while others were Salaskar loyalists. Obviously the two officers shared exclusive news stories with their respective group of reporters only, as these stories would sometimes be against the other camp. I had kept myself away from indulging in any clannish behaviour. As a journalist I had received support from both these officers. Despite the negative stories that I had filed against both these officers, their attitudes towards me had never changed. Both knew that I was only doing my job.

Salaskar’s death came as a big shock for the entire police force of Mumbai. Nobody had vaguely imagined a death of this kind for a man who’d had made over 60 gangsters succumb to his bullets. I grieved over his death and the loss it beckoned for the Mumbai police, but again work related anxiety didn’t allow me to express any sentiment for too long.

After the reports of the death of these three officers, I understood that the attacks were not trivial; the enemy was informed and carried brutal weapons.

As the calamitous evening unfolded, I received another phone call from a friend named Avinash who’d reached St George’s Hospital in search of a relative. He described the horrific state of affairs at the hospital to me. GT Hospital and St George’s Hospital are the two nearest hospitals from the Taj, Nariman house and the Oberoi Trident. There was utter chaos at both. As the buildings of St George’s hospital and CST station are adjacent to each other, most casualties from CST were being brought to St George’s. But the hospital was not equipped with adequate number of beds, doctors, medicines or injections. Victims screamed outside the operation theatre. The morgue aided accommodation of just 20 dead bodies, but the hospital had been flooded with over 50 bodies within an hour of the attacks. Distressed family members and relatives of the dead and the injured searched for their near and dear ones. No systems were in place for the correct identification of the deceased. When the apparatus did begin to function, there occurred miscalculations in the qualification of people and many living victims were pronounced dead.

Pranali Kapse reported from GT Hospital. The scene here was worse than St George’s. Pranali had been taken in as a TV journalist only a year and a half ago and it was here at GT hospital that for the first time in her life she had seen such an enormous number of dead bodies. Ambulances off-loading the bodies presented the raw sight of human intestines hanging behind the vertebrae of the dead. Actually when a bullet strikes from the front, human organs flip out of the body with the bullet from the posterior side and blood oozes out from the front. Pranali identified the body of Vijay Salaskar that lay in a corner of the hospital. The white sheet covering his anatomy had turned red. Everyone in the hospital was astonished to see the state of the encounter specialist of the city. The circumstances at the hospital caused tears to roll out of Pranali’s eyes.

We stood approximately 150 metres away from the Taj but were not in a safe zone. We could hear the alternating sounds of gunfire and IED blasts echoing from the Taj. The terrorists were armed with AK-47s and we stood within their target field. Bullets of diameter 7.62mm used in the AK-47s can attack a target as distant as 300 metres and these weapons can fire several hundred rounds in a minute. Suddenly they opened fire in our direction. The assailants had observed lights discharging from the video cameras of reporters who were engaged in recording their walkthroughs. Fortunately no one was injured. The police ordered all TV crews to turn off their mount-lights and the photographers were asked to not use flash lights. I had escaped death yet another time.

Mayank Bhagwat called up again to report an episode of firing near Metro Cinema junction. A police official named Arun Chite had stood next to Mayank and was urging everyone to move away from the junction. Just then 2 terrorists arrived in a Qualis jeep and sprayed bullets. Arun Chite who stood 3-4 steps away from Mayank was shot dead in no time. 3 bullets had ripped Chite’s body as Mayank had a narrow escape. A bullet had also injured a cameraman representing E TV. It was found out later that this Qualis jeep was a police vehicle driven by Vijay Salaskar before the two killed him and seized it.

After speaking to Mayank, I observed many missed calls on the screen of my mobile phone. Most of them were from home. I assumed that my family had begun viewing me reporting from the Taj. I called up home. Everybody was tensed. I informed that I was safe and that I would return only after the operation subsided. I advised them not to move out of the house the next day.

I had no clue about the fact that the updates and visuals broadcasted by us were being of great use to the National Security Gurads (NSG) who were to soon take charge of the operation. The role of TV channels came in for much criticism in the aftermath of the carnage as news channels suffered many allegations for frivolous work. But subsequently, NSG chief J.K. Dutta’s interview to an English magazine made me feel proud. On the night of 26^th November, the first attack on Mumbai was reported at 9:30 pm but the Cabinet Secretary had given formal orders to the NSG to leave for Mumbai only at 11:30 pm. Even though the orders came in late, Dutta’s team of commandos had prepared a synchronized strategy for the operation as they had been watching the news channels. It was on the basis of the constant updation of news and screening of latest visuals that the NSG analysed that this attack was not an underworld related gangwar but a terror attack of a superior magnitude. They could scrutinize the weapons carried by the terrorists and demarcated the areas of the terrorists’ presence. While watching the news, Dutta had also phoned the DGP of Mahrashtra AN Roy who could not confirm the exact number of terrorists. So it was our coverage that helped` Dutta make his basic calculations, direct his commandos and compute the amount and type of arms and ammunition they needed to load themselves with. Dutta left Delhi once the official protocol was taken by the Cabinet Secretary.

Whenever a big incident such as these attacks occurs, rumours of all type get circulated. This time too many false stories were being gassed around. Some said that the terrorists had made prior bookings in the two hotels they attacked while others said that they worked as waiters in these hotels till they acquired their arms and ammunition. Another one that made its way to the ears of many was that the terrorists had plans to blow up the airport and the taxi blast which occurred near Vile Parle was a result of a calculation failure as the attackers could not reach their final destination on time due to Mumbai traffic. Thousands of such stories get fabricated by eyewitnesses, sometimes police officials but mostly it is an act of a novice journalist. Most of these rumours are contrasting to the real situation. Floating in a galaxy of these rumours can get very complicated and taxing for a reporter who is already struggling with the tension of delivering accurate and timely outputs. What to believe and what all to ignore? Nothing can be aired on the channel before the news is cross-checked and verified from reliable sources. Breaking incorrect news can be very hazardous for the reliability of a news channel.

The number of police officials outside the Taj kept increasing by the hour. The sounds of ravage now seemed to be coming from the upper storeys. Suddenly we observed that one of the rooms of the hotel had started spewing smoke and within no time this smoke was replaced by a full blown fire. Wails and screams started to accompany the sounds of gunfire. The hostages begged for help urging to be saved from the attackers. These shrieks were agitating me. I was getting perturbed thinking if the terrorists were burning the hostages in cold blood? Nobody knew what was going on inside the hotel. The bouts of sporadic firing and the fire in the majestic hotel were the only two giveaways to the horror. Within sometime five fire brigade engines arrived at the hotel. The fire-fighters climbed up the Taj from the outside and tried to extinguish the fire. People from the lower floors were being rescued using sky-lifts. Some entrapped guests were tried to escape the hotel by tying themselves with bed-sheets and curtains and crawling down from the windows of the hotel. The aluminium ladders brought by the firemen could only reach to the 3^rd level of the hotel. The fire brigade officials had received the first call from the police at 10:35 pm to extinguish a fire at the Oberoi Trident. 7 fire engines and 8 water tankers were released for the same .The terrorists had set the lower lobby of Kandhar restaurant on fire which was quickly brought under control by the firemen. Later that night half the force was diverted to Colaba. The firemen complained that they had nobody to guide them at the Taj unlike the Trident where Commissioner of Police Hasan Gafur was himself administering the operation. After talking to these firemen I realised that there was no co-ordination between the defence forces, rescue services and the relief agencies. Be it the 1993 blasts or the 26/ 7 deluge or the 2006 train blasts, never have the policies designed in seminars on disaster management been applied to use. This time was no different from the past and I knew that the same committees would re-convene to design a few more policies after these attacks too.

I was cursing the system when I heard a fireman howl profusely. He was weeping and moaning in Marathi (regional language of Maharashtra state) “I could not save them, why did I take up this profession? I cannot justify my salary... that man implored me to do something but I could not help him.. I couldn’t save his family. .i never wanted to see a day like this”. Obviously the fireman was in a state of shock. His friends tried to console him but to no benefit. Actually the room that had been set ablaze by the attackers hosted the wife and children of the general manger of the hotel Karmbir Kang. It was their screams and cries that we could observe at the Gateway of India. Kang was begging and pleading every police official and fire-fighter to rescue his family because he had the twin responsibility of evicting every guest trapped in the hotel and helping his own family. It was because of Kang’s assistance that a lot of guests were rescued, but unfortunately he could not save his own wife and children. By the time the firemen extinguished the fire in their room, Kang’s family was lost. This fireman was holding himself responsible for their death. In the room next to Kang’s family, Sabina Sehgal, a journalist with the Times of India was also shot dead by the terrorists.

Despite all the flaws that existed in the co-ordination between different forces, the firemen had done a commendable job. These brave hearts were constantly on the go and aided the rescue operations without putting on any bullet proof jackets. They continued to display their valour regardless of the fact that they could easily be spotted by the terrorists. They did get attacked. A grenade burst right next to a fire brigade which was involved in the rescue of the trapped hostages. Sharpnels hit the driver Mohanlal Sanle. The vehicles suffered a few damages too but no fireman was brutally injured. The team did not loose focus even after Sangle had been injured. Throughout the night the perpetrators kept igniting fires in different rooms of the Taj and the firemen displayed exemplary courage and put out the blaze.

Close to this time, I received an SMS from a friend confirming an encounter between cops and two terrorists near Girgaon Chowpatty. The terrorists were trying to flee to Malabar Hills in a stolen Skoda car. These two were the same terrorists who’d had earlier attacked at the CST and then killed Salaskar, Karkare and Kamte. One terrorist was declared killed in this encounter.

My political correspondent Nilesh Khare was stopped from going to the bungalow of the depuy CM RR Patil. His car was blocked and a police official put a revolver to Nilesh’s head in order to stop him from taking the car forward. The car, driver, camera and equipment was checked thoroughly and despite a clean-chit he was not allowed to proceed towards the Deputy Chief Minister’s bungalow. Nilesh had been sent to the Deputy CM to get a confirmation on the various reports that had trickled in from a mixture of sources and for the official declaration of the number of casualties in he attacks.

The government had released its first statement at 2 am. Speaker of Maharashtra State Government, Bhushan Gagrani spoke to the media from the 6^th floor of the Parliament. He indicated that there could be 16 terrorists in the city who had invaded from seawaters. No verification was made on the number of dead and injured. The deaths of Hemant Karkare, Vijay Salskar and Ashok Kamte were also not ascertained. However the leading channels had confirmed their deaths and televised the news. On being asked about the deaths of these three, Gagrani said that they’d only been injured.

Nilesh had received a phone call from the Government’s information office that the CM and the Deputy CM would address an urgent press conference at 5 am. The CM had cancelled his official visit to Kerala and returned to Mumbai after learning about the attacks. He was meant to inaugurate the houses donated by the Maharashtra government to the Tsunami victims on the 27^thof November. During the conference, one could easily identify that the CM was much stressed. It was here that for the first time the Government had declared the 3 heroes of Mumbai police dead. Vilas Rao Deshmukh had made this declaration with moist eyes. It was a day of many firsts. Never before had any political reporter seen the CM so dejected.

My phone was engaged throughout the night on the 26^th of November. I was either gathering information from my sources or busy co-ordinating with the bureau and the head office to be able to present constant updates. I realised that my wife had been trying to call frantically and observed some missed calls from her. I called back at once.

Me: Are u not watching the news?

Wife: Of course I am. Are you the only reporter there?

.Me: There are many of them but I can’t move from here. I will return once the operation ends.

Wife: When will it end?

Me: I don’t know. Maybe a little later.

Wife: But we have to catch a train to Lucknow in the morning. How do you think will we manage?

Me: What are you talking? Do you still think we are going to Lucknow? I can’t leave Mumbai even if the operation ends in the morning. There will be many follow up stories to cover.

Wife: What kind of a job is this… she disconnected the phone in disappointment.

My wife had been eagerly waiting for the morning of 27^th of November. It was the first time that she was visiting her maiden-home after our wedding. She has 2 elder sisters. My father-in- law had prearranged a very elaborate sacred prayer which was recitation of holy epic Ramayana with his 3 sons-in-law. The other two sons in law lived in Kanpur. I and my wife had to be present at this functiom on the 30^th of November after attending my uncle’s daughter’s wedding in Lucknow on the 29^th. I was supposed to go on leave from the 27^thof November till the 1^st of December. But the attacks had ruined my plans. And this was not the first time an insurgent incident had demolished my plans with my wife.

The whole nation had glued its eyes to the television. Nobody had ever witnessed a more horrifying reality show. News channels had replaced sports channels and entertainments shows in almost every household. My wife is an English teacher in a primary school. We had got married just 7 months ago, in the month of April. She had no idea about an average day in the life of a crime-journalist before she got married to me. I had no time-table or fixed working hours. Whenever I would sit to chat with her in my free time, my phone would ring at least a couple of times. Many times a single phone call had made me rush from home to a trouble laden location. Whether it was the violence caused by the Sikh community protesting against the Dera Sacha Sauda or the agitation by the supporters of Raj Thackeray’s party Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) or the police encounter with Rahul Raj (a youngster from North India who hijacked a city bus), my wife would almost collapse when she saw me cover these stories. She would often suggest me to take up a desk job, but each time, I’d have the same answer to give to her that I derived great satisfaction in reporting from the field and that I was known for my crime-reporting. She was beginning to understand slowly.

Immediately after I finished talking to my wife, I received a call from my mother. She’d reached Lucknow to be able to help in the preparations for the wedding. I’d got mad at my mother when she asked me if I could make it for the wedding.

Me: how can you ask me if I can make it? Are u not watching the news?

Mom: I’m watching and I know that you wont be able t make it. But everyone here is expecting you. Sarita(the bride) wishes to see you, so I thought to check with you.

Me: No I cannot. Maybe I can catch a late night flight on the 29^th if the operation subsides. But I can’t catch the train in the morning.

Mom: Ok. Take care of yourself. Don’t be over-enthusiastic. I’m scared for you.

Me: Ma I’m outside the hotel and I’m safe. There are many that are trapped inside, held as hostages whose families don’t even know if their dear ones are dead or alive. Believe me ma, you’re lucky that your son’s alive.

Mom: You’ll never change. Do whatever you like.

Later that night, the marine commandos or the MARCOS had replaced the Mumbai police officials and taken charge of the rescue operations. Both uniformed and casually dressed policemen now took position outside the hotel. I assumed that the operation would come to an end in the morning and realised that it was morning already. The sun had shone. I looked at my wrist-watch, it was 6 30 am.

Chapter 2

27 November: Never should such a morning ever come again.

“Spirit of life” had met its anti-thesis last night and I had no idea how time had flown. I was constantly engaged in giving phonos, updates, walkthroughs and co-ordination with the rest of my reporters as they fearlessly completed the tasks assigned to them. Everyone had only one worry; the coverage should not get affected. We were not the only ones who were worried to acquire the fastest visuals and information. Every other reporter from each rival channel shared the same insecurity. News channels were competing against one another but we had strict orders to not put anything on-air before its verification. Our aim was to telecast authentic anecdotes and we did not televise any visual which could let out the defence strategy being used by the forces to the attackers.

Nobody jogged in front of the Taj this morning. One could only spot either defence personnel or policemen and media professionals around the Taj. The very striking sounds of laughter emerging from a laughter club that greeted every passer by a good morning were replaced by the sounds of combat. Every morning the area opposite the main entrance of the Taj is flocked by thousands of pigeons. The birds had kept up the custom despite the disturbed ambience, but there was nobody to feed them their breakfast this morning. Rather, each round of fire would scare them to fly away. The jetty services at the Gateway that took hundreds of tourists to Elephanta, Alibaug and Uran had also stopped plying. I received a call from the head office in Noida to give a chat on the morning after the attacks with the Taj in the background. I described the events of the previous night in a sequential manner and updated the viewers on the fresh developments in the story. The operation had not finished yet and the terrorists had holed up in the hotel. I had been awake since Wednesday morning and the dark circles under my eyes had now become darker. But I was not feeling sleepy. A few well wishers called up after viewing my chat in the morning bulletin “You haven’t slept the night, take rest if you can.” “How long will this operation go on for?” “You don’t seem to be feeling very well.” I thanked everyone for their concern and reassured them that the operation would come to an end in sometime.

None of my team members had slept the night as everyone worked with the common agenda of delivering the best output possible. Some local residents had dropped by and offered us water and biscuits. “Please eat something; we have been watching you cover the operation since last night, we feel like contributing too. We will feel good if you ate something”. It was evident that the average Mumbaikars felt the need to contribute in their own little ways. I picked two pieces of biscuits, thanked them and requested them to offer some eatables to the policemen too. It was 10:30 am when I ate these two biscuits after having eaten a small snack from a road side stall at 8 pm on Thursday.

The previous night had left behind a trail of shock and the entire city was terrified this morning. The whole of South Mumbai, especially Colaba was completely shut. As the day progressed, the number of media persons camping outside the Taj increased. By now, a lot of international news channels and agencies had also reached the Taj. The open space outside the hotel had filled with media persons. Many politicians tried to use this opportunity to campaign. Many ministers of the ruling party, a few from the opposition and a certain municipal-corporaters had turned up with their party members. They were eager to speak to TV and print journalists and didn’t leave a stone unturned to make it obvious that they wished to get publicity. We decided to give them a pass. Some regional channels meandered around them for getting their comment. We had decided that we would only speak to the CM or the Deputy CM or any such person who’d have some earnest information about the attacks. We didn’t want to become the mouthpieces of politicians wanting to get limelight or the opposition parties that sought to criticize the Government. Some politicians tried to grab attention of the reporters by appreciating their work. “Good job”, “You are not any less than a commando”, “take care.”. etc

Correspondents from different bureaus of Star News were also transferred to help us. National editor Deepak Chaurasia and national bureau chief Rajan Singh came in from Delhi and Chief of Bureau Ahmedabad, Brajesh Kumar Singh and Venkatesh Chapalgaonkar, Bureau Chief of Pune joined us for the coverage. Operations were taking place at three places. I was present at the Taj with reporters Sachin Bhide, Ganesh Thakur and Avinash Degaskar. Together we had covered the Taj from all sides so that we could capture each and every activity of the terrorists and no combat step of the security forces could be missed. Umesh Kumawat, Mayur Parikh and Upendra Rai were reporting from the Oberoi Trident. There too, the reporters had covered the hotel from all sides. The Nariman House at Colaba, which is the cultural centre of the Jews was also attacked by two terrorists who’d held a few people as hostages. Subodh Mishra and Vilas Athawale had placed their cameras in nearby high rise towers. OB vans were installed at all these locations so that footage could be uplinked as soon as it was captured. All reporters and cameramen at these three locations were within the target fields of the attackers. I started strolling around the Taj in anticipation that I might come across a known police official who could give information from inside the Taj. Around this time, Umesh Kumawat called up to inform that the NSG (National Security Guards)commandos had reached the Oberoi and that they were going to reach the Taj soon. Within sometime, tall and sturdy NSG commandoes reached the Taj and penetrated the hotel after a few discussions outside. A long silence prevailed after the commandos entered the Taj. It seemed as if the commandos had captured the terrorists immediately after their entry in the hotel or as if the terrorists had fled. Members of the press had started assuming that the operation had come to an end. Many had phoned their bureaus to inform that the formal announcement of the operations termination could soon be made. Media persons had begun to laze when a sudden uproar was caused due to a fresh round of firing within the hotel. These sounds of firing were different from the sounds of gunfire we had heard the previous night. These were more terrifying. And all of a sudden it appeared to me as if I was witnessing a war. The NSG had kick-started their operation and the terrorists were offering counter attacks.

These attacks and counter attacks continued till late afternoon but no information had seeped out of the hotel. At this time, latest information came in that the police had found the boat which the terrorists had used to enter the Indian state. The attackers had disembarked at a fishermen’s colony, exactly opposite to the Badhwar Park Railway Colony in South Mumbai’s Cuffe Parade. Since I had designated an adequate number of reporters at the Taj, I decided to shift to Cuffe Parade with my cameraman.

This slum near Badhwar Park smelt of dried fish. Most of the area here is covered by the hutments of the fishermen except a small patch where the fishermen anchor their boats. It was there that two policemen sat and I guessed that it was the place I’d come looking for. I met and interviewed a fisherman named Laxman Khamba(name changed) as he narrated that he had seen the terrorists arrive in a small boat. He revealed that a total of 10 young boys had entered the city from this very locality the previous night. They appeared to be 20-30 years old. All of them had worn t-shirts and carried large sized bags. They had arrived in a yellow coloured engine-boat. Such inflatable boats are mostly used for water sports. Khamba was shocked to see them as the local residents were only used-to seeing fishermen in that side of the water body. Then who were these boys? Khamba had quizzed one of the boys as to whom they were only to get an angered look and a monosyllabic answer “student”. They hadn’t replied to any other query and only stared back irately. Khamba had suspected the hand of these boys in the attacks and given a detailed account to the Cuffe Parade Police station, where the engine-boat had been shifted.

The information given by Khamba was vital as it explained how the terrorists had entered the country. Now the agenda was to capture visuals of the motorboat that lay in police custody. It was set aside in the corridors of the Cuffe Parade police station. Not too many police officials were present at the police station when I reached there with my cameraman. Vidya from Aaj Tak news channel and a few other reporters had reached the police station too. Everybody was arguing with a constable who wasn’t letting the press capture the visuals of the motorboat. “Please don’t irritate me. I haven’t slept since last night, I cannot let you photograph the boat, it is the only evidence we have.” he said. We tried to convince him but to no advantage. On seeing that the reporters were reliant on him, he took a step forward in expressing his angst against journalists “You will leave after taking the photographs but I will loose my job. You talk of co-operation but we policemen are always your soft targets. You people trash our esteem, you call us corrupt, you call us careless and useless, but you have no idea about what all we face… we do not go home for days, cannot eat meals on time, we are always under pressure.. Its like walking on a rope in a circus, one error can make you loose your job. So many of our officers have died since last night. They were slain on the job. Why don’t you take note of all these things? Why should we co-operate with you?”

These statements of the constable reflected annoyance of the lower ranked members of the police force. Every journalist sympathised with him. But everyone had come to the police station with the plan of capturing the visuals of the motorboat and this constable played hindrance. Senior Inspector , Assistant Commissioner of Police, Deputy Commissioner of Police were all contacted but no-one answered. Journalists were deciding to leave the police station premises when a police officer entered on his bike. This police officer had good personal relations with the press. He was shocked to see a huge number of media officials. “How come you all are here? The operations are on at the Taj and the Oberoi”. “We want to shoot the boat in which the terrorists had arrived, but your constable is not letting us.” A reporter said angrily. “It’s kept in the back, please escort all of them and let them shoot. Don’t give them any stress” the officer admonished the constable. On receiving orders from the officer, the constable took the yellow motor-boat. It was a small vessel but could accommodate 10 people. But the thought which bothered me unstoppably was that how could they manage carrying their bags filled with guns, ammunition, magazines etc in this small boat? The engine of the boat was kept separately. It was a Yamaha engine. The nagging constable was now posing with the boat and requested to be filmed.

This boat was used by the terrorists in the last fraction of their travel. All other specifics and information related to the boat were first exposed by our reporter Umesh Kumawat. He found out that that the terrorist Ajmal Aamir Kasab, who was caught alive in an encounter at the Girgaon Chowpattty had been hurt in his hand and hospitalised. It was here on the hospital bed that Kasab had narrated the story of his arrival in Mumbai to Assistant Commissioner of Police Tanaji Ghatge. Kasab revealed that after training him and his accomplices, his leader Jaki ur-Rehman alias Jacky Chacha had accompanied them on a motor boat named Al-Husseni which they had boarded near the Karachi harbour. They navigated this boat and moved towards Porbander in Gujarat and hijacked a Gujarati fishing boat near the India-Pakistan border. This boat was called Kuber. Jacky Chacha returned from here. There were 5 Indian sailors aboard Kuber at that time. The attackers killed the crew of four and dumped their bodies into the sea and forced Captain Amarsingh Solanki to sail to Mumbai. Every attacker was equipped with GPRS devices and satellite phones; therefore reaching Mumbai was not difficult. Once they were 12 nautical miles from Mumbai, the head of their group Ismail killed Amarsingh Solanki by slivering his neck and hid his dead body in the treasure box of the boat. From here they cruised in the yellow boat which had been identified and held in reserve at the Cuffe Parade police station. Eventually, the coast guard had traced ‘Kuber’ and found the body of Amar Singh Solanki..

I descended to the Taj and uplinked the shots of the boat. It was afternoon and the intermittent cross-fire between the police and the attackers was on. Deepak Chaurasia was giving live updates from the shore at the Gateway of India. I decided to move to a lane at the back of the Taj. There was absolute silence here. Only armed policemen and army men stood in position. Everyone’s eyes had reddened due to lack of sleep but they looked active and directed their awareness towards the Taj. They wore bullet proof jackets as the terrorists could have attacked from anywhere. The vibes transmitted stress. From here I glanced at the large number of reporters who stood at the Gateway. I could hear their murmur and sounds of their chats and phonos. Many onlookers had also gathered. But the panorama here in the lane behind the hotel was absolutely different. It looked dead as a graveyard. But I could certainly see poise in the eyes of the police men who seemed desperate to avenge the attacks. I angled my camera towards the Taj and sat in a corner. I chanced upon the days newspaper. Every page of the news paper told the tale of the hell that had broken loose on the financial capital.

The front page carried the photograph of Kasab and his accomplice Ismail. Another picture of the blood sprayed floor of the CST station depicted the anguish of hundreds of innocents. I developed goose bumps as I scanned the photographs of the dead police officials and naïve citizens. Had I stopped at the CST station last night, mine could have been another face in this collage. The terrorists had killed the oblivious travellers very brutally. I stressed on Kasabs picture and found it difficult to comprehend that how a lad who could pass off for a boy next door may well have such cruel intentions. I had no choice but to believe. The AK-47 in his hands and the demonic grin on his face suggested that devils had entered Mumbai on the previous night. I saw an image of a hospitalised Kasab too and gathered much such information that I had not known or had overlooked. I was immersed in the newspaper when our operations manger Uday rang me up “Jitu bhai, I have brought food, please reach the OB van parked at the Gateway and eat lunch.” The idea of food made me feel hungry or else I hadn’t thought of eating after consuming those two biscuits in the morning. I asked Uday if he had offered food to all our reporters and crews and was told that he was delivering it one by one to every body.

“But I don’t have assistance of any other reporter on this side, we might miss a story if I move from here, why don’t you tell Avinash Degaskar to finish eating and replace me at the back of the Taj. I will budge once he’s here.” Avinash relieved me and I went to the Gateway with my cameraman Gajanan. They had brought in vegetarian Biriyani for everyone. Uday had struggled a lot to be able to bring the food till the OB van. From Regal Cinema till the Gateway, he had been stopped, checked and questioned multiple times. I was very hungry and started eating instantaneously, but I could not go beyond 4-5 spoons. I didn’t feel like eating. I had also begun to fear that I might get sleepy after consuming rice so i stopped eating and reached the OB van to charge my mobile phone. Keeping two mobile phones came very handy in this situation. I had been constantly using my phone since the previous night which led to the rapid discharge of the batteries. So to bail my self out, I kept shifting my SIM card from one instrument to another and put the discharged phone for charging in the OB. Many of my reporters and journalists of other channels had kept their phones for charging in our Ob van. There were scores of phones but only two chargers. Hence everyone would charge their phones for a bit and ran to the OB van when the batteries started to flicker.

Unremitting firing continued in the Taj. Many political parties and NGOs stationed their ambulances outside the main gate and as a dead body would get taken out of the hotel, it would be moved to a hospital in these ambulances. I met many old friends in the group of journalists standing at the Gateway. They now represented a diverse range of channels and newspapers in different parts of the country. I resolved their queries about the geographical topography of south Mumbai and reviewed the detailed profiles of Hemant Karkare, Ashok Kamte and Vijay Salskar for them. I also shared the phone numbers of some important police and government officials. In the middle of this conversation, we all heard the clatter of a helicopter. This was the Indian Navy’s Sea King which had borne flight from the neighbouring naval base INS Kunjali. The defence forces wanted to conduct aerial operations at the Taj and the Nariman House. But it returned after taking 3-4 rounds. It wasn’t possible to carry out an aerial operation when the sun had begun to set.

This evening at the Gateway was very scary. On a regular evening foreign and general tourists would visit the Gateway, local residents would come for jogs and walks. One could find the ancient Victorias (horse carts) parked on the main road opposite the Taj and spot a lot of interfering tea and chick-pea vendors. If you looked at the sea, you could spot a lot of motorboats decorated with small bulbs that served as venue for many theme parties. But none of these were visible this evening. They had been replaced by police vans, ambulances, fire brigade engines and Ob vans of various news channels. The only souls present were uniformed defence personnel, police officials and media persons.

I had been wearing a blue Fab-India shirt since Thursday morning which had soddened in sweat due to an overdo of running around. The dust on the roads and the smoke billowing from the Taj had blackened the shirt further. I wasn’t getting as edgy and restless due to sleeplessness as I was getting because of this shirt. I had started smelling of bad odour. I felt like going home to take a bath, but it wasn’t a good idea to leave the spot when the operation was on in full force. So, to feel better, I walked up to the OB van, filled a bottle of water and emptied it on my head. Deepak Chaurasia noticed me and said “Jitu, why don’t you rest for sometime? I’m here and so are other reporters. You are here since last night. Why don’t you go to my hotel room and rest for sometime, it’s nearby?” Deepak’s suggestion sounded correct, but I thought it was risky to leave the spot as the operation could have ended anytime.

“Thanks Deepakji, but I feel I should not move from here”.

“Please don’t compel yourself, just rest for sometime.. you never know how much longer it might go on for. Such encounters in Kashmir go on for weeks sometimes. I’m keeping an eye and am in touch with my sources in the central agencies. You go and rest for sometime as we don’t want you to fall sick.”

I could not say no to Deepak. I decided to leave the Taj but went straight to my maternal grandmother’s house instead of Deepak’s hotel room. Her house was in Masjid Bunder area of South Mumbai, around 20 minutes from the Taj. My wife had also reached there with a couple of my clothes. From the Gateway, I walked up to Kalaghora and thereon took a cab for Masjid Bunder. My family was watching Star News and Deepak Chaurasia was giving a live update. My relatives were happy to see me but expressed concern on seeing my state. My eyes were red and the dark circles had become darker. The Fab-India shirt had gathered layers of dust. I straight away went to the bathroom and stood under a hot shower for half an hour. The bathing made me feel better and relieved but my body was fatigued and I had begun to feel sleepy. Till the time I was busy, I did not think about any physical ache, but now that I was a little snug, I judged that my body had given up. My head, back and feet hurt terribly. I ate 2 chapatis and vegetable and popped an asprin to suppress the multiple aches that had raided my anatomy. My grandmother strained that I slept the night and resumed work from the next day but I contested her suggestion and told her that it was not feasible for me to stay home the whole night. I decided to sleep for two hours. She didn’t argue with me because she had assumed that I would not be able to wake up once I’d sleep. I feared the same and hence set an alarm for 1 am. I put my phone for charging but did not keep it on silent thinking that my informers might call up. I was trying to sleep but the phone rang within 10 minutes. I answered with a heavy voice. It was Shivam from the Noida assignment desk.

“Sir xyz channel is flashing Breaking News that the operation has abated at the Taj. Can you please check? I have asked Deepak to check as well.”

“Ok. I will find out and leave for the Taj.”

“Alright Sir. Try to check fast because another channel has started to flash the same news too.”

I didn’t crave to sleep after attending this call and immediately called up a source who was at the Taj itself. He told me that the operation was very much on. Three terrorists were alive and that the NSG was still battling it out with them. While talking to him, I could hear the sounds of gun shots. I requested my source to ring me up immediately after the operation ended and dialled Shivam.

-Shivam both those channels are flashing the wrong update. The operation is very much on. One can still hear firing sounds outside the Taj.

-Yes you’re right sir, we have just heard the sounds in Deepak Chaurasia’s live. Those two channels have stopped flashing the wrong news now.

I tried to sleep again. It wouldn’t have been more that 20 minutes that Shivam rang me up one more time.

- Sir once again a couple of channels are playing the same news-of the operation having come to an end. No firing sounds have echoed in a long time. I guess the operation has wrapped up. Can you please check?

I called up my source again. He said “Why don’t you take rest. I will call you once the operation comes to an end, Don’t worry.”

How could I not worry? The operation coming to an end would not just have been the nations but the world’s biggest news. I dropped the idea of taking rest and reached the Taj. There was continuous firing throughout the night. The terrorists set fire to many areas in the heritage hotel and the firemen used their latest gadgets to deal with the situation. International reporters kept increasing in number. More and more people started flocking to the area. Some by standing slum boys teased a female CNN reporter. Few had come drunk. Whenever she attempted to speak in front of the camera, these boys would start imitating her and stood behind her, awaiting their TV debut in a foreign land. They also indulged in an occasional pushing. She was helpless. Since the city’s entire forces were deployed in the operation, there was apparently no manpower left for crowd control. The reporters didn’t jump into the matter as it could have led to missing important shots and they knew that restless masses could offer assault and could damage cameras. Eventually the CNN reporter had to pick up her camera crew and camp elsewhere.

Chapter 3: the day of maximum action

Two nights had passed and the bloody-battle hadn’t come to an end. I had given countless phonos and updates on both my Hindi and Marathi networks throughout the night. Reporter Vilas Athawale called me up to inform that the commandos were to perform an aerial operation at the Nariman House this morning. He needed more cameras to capture the visuals of commandos flushing out the terrorists from this Jewish cultural centre. I decided to leave the responsibility of Taj’s coverage to my team and proceed to Nariman House which is positioned at a distance of just a kilometre and a half from the Taj, but it took me half an hour to reach there. The security forces had cordoned-off all the roads surrounding the Nariman House. I produced proof of my identification to the policemen and tried to explain the purpose of my presence in the area, but they didn’t allow me to move forward in the direction of the building. There was little I could do but I didn’t want to give up. I surrendered my vehicle some 500 metres away from the Nariman House and started walking into the surrounding narrow municipal lanes to reach a building parallel to the Nariman House, a 50 year old, typical old Mumbai construction that did not have a lift. We climbed up its 6 floors to reach the terrace. I was out of breath but nonetheless, worried more about whether I will be able to shoot the commando operation from here.

I focused straight towards Nariman House. The Naval forces’ Sea King was strumming above the Nariman House. I was lucky to reach at the right time. The NSG’s men-in-black had taken position in almost all buildings surrounding the Nariman House and pointed their snipers in the direction of a certain window behind which the terrorists had held an Israeli couple as hostage. (Actually they had killed the couple by this time.)A long rope was thrown from the helicopter and almost half a dozen commandos rappelled down from the carrier on to the terrace of the Nariman House. One commando had accidentally slipped from the rope and hurt his right foot. But he did no leave his weapon and hopped to a corner to take position. I gave a phono on the channel that the Nariman house had been stormed by the fast-roping NSG commandos and we could expect a more rapid action against the terrorists.

The helicopter re-appeared on top of the Nariman House and another half a dozen commandos slid down. The terrorists fired at helicopter but thankfully it had moved away from their range. The operation had picked speed immediately after the descent of the commandos. The firing became more fervent from both sides. The NSG commandos offered grenade attacks. I had shot the entire episode from just 200 metres away from the Nariman House. This was the most thrilling but also the riskiest assignment of my career. Knowing that they were covered from all sides, the terrorists fired in all possible directions and we had stood well within their target range.

I reached the ob van parked near the Nariman House with the first tape of the visuals of this aerial operation. Vilas Athawale had also reached the Ob van with his set of visuals. The ob engineers had brought some biscuits which we ate between sips of water. Reporter Subodh Mishra also arrived at the OB van with his tape. He had shot the operation from the North of the Nariman House which also happened to be straight in line of the aim of the terrorists. He had recorded the direct confrontation between the commandos and the attackers. The terrorists had lopped a grenade towards him as well. After uplinking my tape, I once again climbed the 6 floors of the building atop which my cameraman shot more of the aerial operation. I saw that Umesh Kumawat had also reached the terrace of a nearby building. We eventually had a total of 4 cameras to cover the operation from different directions. Installation of a large number of cameras was imperative because of the aggressive and unpredictive nature of the action at the Nariman House. I looked down from the top of the building and saw that police vans, ambulances and fire engines stood on stand-by. I also spotted a young foreigner outside the Nariman House who was incessantly engrossed in a phone call and appeared to be very distressed. Some young kids on our terrace made fun of the gentleman who trotted the lane restlessly. An elderly resident of the building shooed them away as he brought us some water. He informed me that the young, fair gentleman was of Jewish origin and was associated with the Israeli consulate. He had been in touch with the hostages inside the Nariman House over phone but could no longer talk to them and that is why he was so grief-stricken.

Electronic media’s role in the coverage of these high-risk counter-terror operations was declared unrelenting by few. On the morning of the 29^th, the News Broadcasters Association had dispatched messages to editors of 30 news channels requesting them to telecast the operation with utmost sensitivity so that the process or the hostages would not get jeopardised. NSG Chief JK Dutta was especially upset about the live telecast of the operation as handlers of the terrorists could view the live coverage of the operation and discuss it with the terrorists inside the Nariman House. Dutta informed the chief of Intelligence Bureau P C Haldar that the magnitude of the combat offered by the commandos fell and the ability to surprise the enemy had reduced as the location, strength, movement and strategy of the commandos was being given away and the attackers could ambush the commandos. As far as the Taj was concerned, the channels shot from a distance and no commando action was visible clearly. One could only capture the fire on the dome of the iconic hotel or the smoke billowing from the building as the combat took place inside the hotel. Visuals from the Nariman House were clear but they we were showing them 15-20 minutes after they had been shot so that the terrorists would not figure the commando movement. During this time, terrorists Babar Imran and Nasir had contacted a certain news channel which is famous for presenting news based on superstitious stories, occult sciences etc from the Nariman House. The terrorists informed the news presenter that they were avenging the killings of their religious-brothers in Kashmir and Gujarat with this insurgency. The channel thought of itself as one of the cat’s whiskers after the attainment of this interview and telecasted it repeatedly. Later the broadcast ministry had sent a notice to them and asked for an explanation.

I was asked to march to the Oberoi Trident as Upendra had to leave for the office of Mumbai Port Trust and Mayank would have been left sole in-charge. With the help of his sources at the Ports, Upendra aspired to be the first one to shoot the boat named Kuber which was seized by the terrorists at Porbander. I followed the orders given to me and reached the Trident. Here too, the scene was horrifying. A fierce battle raged between the security forces and the terrorists. Blasts and heavy firing could be heard continuously. Media persons gathered outside could see guests peering out of the windows. The hotel was surrounded by the police force from all directions and a hoard of onlookers had gathered behind the police barricades. The trapped guests were being evicted from the Express towers side gate of the hotel. There were both Indians and foreigners among the trapped. Some cried, others came out shivering, a few had blood all over their clothes and many came out saying prayers. The moment anyone was rescued, all media teams attacked the person like a bunch of ravenous vultures. They pushed each other to be able to capture the gesticulation of the salvaged. Some really enthusiastic young reporters jutted their boom mikes in the face of rescued hostages. How would the victims of such a shocking experience of two days speak anything? I felt ashamed standing in the group of media persons. It felt as if the reporters were telling the victims “You have escaped the terrorists, but how will u escape us?” I didn’t blame them because they were doing what the system of this business expected them to do. A system which was insensitive, that propelled cut throat competition and needed self-censorship. Television journalism had boomed in the last 6-7 years, but it could not define its limits. Everyone did whatever they felt-like in the name of free press.

Another embarrassing act on part of the media-clan on this day had made me feel equally ashamed when a few respectable TV channels had not verified a rumour that had sparked off and declared that CST station, GT Hospital and Metro Cinema were under terrorist attacks again. News channels had frightened the city all over again.

I received a call from the Noida office around 1 pm that a rival channel was flashing news of fresh attacks and mayhem at the CST station. I didn’t believe them because after the attacks on the 26^th night, its security had been heightened, there was a strong presence of defence forces and there were hardly any passengers at the station. CST station and most other parts of South Mumbai had converted into silent cemeteries hence I found it difficult to digest that the terrorists could strike at CST again. I was about to call up the railway control room to check when the channel’s managing editor Milind Khandekar rang me up and reprimanded “Why don’t we have the news on the CST firing? All the channels are flashing it.” I told him that it hadn’t been confirmed and that I didn’t think any such event could have happened. I told him that I’d check personally if they could wait for 10 minutes. He thought 10 minutes could cost prove perilous for the channel but he agreed to wait for me to confirm.

I and my cameraman left immediately for the CST station from the Lion Gate side. While I was on the way, I received another call from the Noida assignment that a leading channel had flashed reports of fresh firing at GT Hospital, Metro Cinema and the Parsi Dairy near Marine lines. I urged them to not put up anything till I confirmed the news. As our car crossed The Reserve Bank of India (RBI), I observed a huge pandemonium. People ran away from the roads and entered different buildings to save themselves. A few policemen who looked like new entrants in the force ran from the old RBI compound towards the new building and shut themselves up in a garage. They were terrified. During the entire coverage this was when I felt most scared. The environment suggested that firing did take place at the CST. We were heading in the direction from where people were running away. My driver started trembling and advised me not to advance-“We can be shot at. I am scared” The cameraman hesitated from saying anything but I could read it in his eyes that he wanted to restrain. We all were petrified but had no choice. I told the driver that he may not accompany us till CST and could go back after dropping us at the main post office few meters away from the station. I and my cameraman got off from the car and began to walk towards the CST. There was great presence of police officials outside the police station, however, we did’nt hear any gunfire. Just then the additional Director General of Police (Railways) KP Raghuvanshi arrived at the CST. He had worn a bullet proof jacket and the security guards around him were fully alert. I discovered that Umesh Kumawat had also left the Nariman House and dropped by to confirm the news of fresh firing. The large presence of the police force at the CST suggested that something definitely had transpired here. I started to believe that the news of fresh attacks was true and felt guilty of not having broken the story sooner than the rival channels. I thought we had not been concerted enough and felt defeated.

In a dejected tone I asked a police official “What happened here? Was there another episode of firing?”

“No ..No.. there was no firing, the DFMD had fallen down which led to all this chaos.” He said and started talking on the phone

I felt relieved. But I could not understand as to what the DFMD was? I asked a constable. “Brother what is a DFMD?” DFMD ? He scratched his head. Every second was precious as I had to update my boss Milind Khandekar on the matter at the CST. I stared at the clueless constable in fury and walked ahead when another policeman stopped me and pointed at the doorway of the station. “See that, that is DFMD, it is acronym for Door Frame Metal Detector.” The door shaped metal detector installed at the entrance of the station by the railway police for the scrutiny of the passengers is known as DFMD. The same police official made me understand the sequence of events that had turned out. According to him, a constable had accidentally fired from his rifle which led to the passengers think that terrorists had struck again. As a stampede hurried out, someone pushed the DFMD. I fell down and the passengers at the station confused the noise it made for sounds of attack. The police commissioner of the Railway gave a quote saying that there was no firing at the CST. However, he did not confirm the news of the accidental fire. Once again, I received a call from Milind-“what happened about the news of firing at the CST?”

-“Milind ji the reports are wrong. There has been no fresh attack. The metal detector had fallen and the people confused its racket for a fresh round of terror attacks. Umesh is taking a byte from the Railway police commissioner.”

-“Ok but what about the other spots? Many channels are flashing news vis-à-vis firing at GT hospital, Parsi dairy etc. Our channel hasn’t aired anything yet.”

Please wait for some more time, these spots are all very close from CST, I will set out immediately.

After disconnecting the phone I approached the GT Hospital from its back.This was where the attackers had killed Salaskar, Karkare and Kamte. A lot of policemen stood here. I asked them if any firing had occurred.

-“No, not at all. You TV people are telecasting that there has been firing at the hospital. We have searched the entire hospital. There is no terrorist here. No doctor, patient or nurse has heard any sounds of gunshots.”

I took a breath of relief. News of firing in the hospital had also turned out to be untrue. Similarly, there were no attacks at Metro junction or Parsi Dairy.

I had understood the matter. I dialled Milind Khandekar-“There has been no firing at any place in Mumbai today. All those channels are running the wrong news. Actually these four spots CST, GT Hospital, Metro Cinema and Parsi Dairy are very close to each other, within a stretch of 3-4 kilometres. When a furore broke out at the CST after the DFMD fell, people ran to GT hospital where observers thought that the hospital had been attacked. Terrified masses fuelled panic and ran in the direction of Parsi Dairy and Metro taking the rumour to these places as well. This rumour spread and channels carried it without bothering to find the real version.”

“Ok so we will open the 2 pm bulletin with your phono. Please narrate the truth to the country.”

The next bulletin opened with my phono and I informed the viewers that there was peace at GT Hospital, Parsi Dairy, Metro Cinema and CST. As we broke this news, all those channels that’d been running the news of fresh attacks dropped their story at once, without any explanation or apology. After this disgraceful episode, the Maharashtra Governmet had put police pressure on cable operators and blacked out a few news channels for a couple of hours.

In the afternoon information filtered in that the operations at the Trident and Nariman House had abated. NSG constable Gajendra Singh had died in the operation at the Nariman House. The serurity personnel outside the Taj too were happy to hear about the conclusion of the operations at the other two locations. But the Taj was still held at ransom. Close to the evening, the NSG acquired total control over the upper floors of the Taj and the terrorists now headed towards the lower floors. By 6 pm, the terrorists were forced to come down to the first floor although they continued to fire and throw grenades. A window exactly in front of our video cameras started emitting smoke and eventually fire. The terrorists had set a room on fire again. All news channels showed a live telecast of this episode. Many onlookers had also gathered behind the reporters. Suddenly there was a blast in front of us and hit the tripod of an international news crew. It caused a chaos within seconds. The mass of bystanders started to run helter skelter. All members of the press immediately lied down on the road. As the terrorists confronted the commandos, some gunfire had got directed towards the media too and one of the bullets had rubbed off on a woman’s shoulder. People from the crowd took her to a hospital. Now that the nozzles of the terrorists’ rifles were directed towards the members of the press, it was advisable to report from positioning horizontally at the ground. But I had a problem. Next to me lay a senior TV journalist who is very fond of chewing tobacco and within the last few hours he had painted the ground at the Gateway red. How could I lie down and report from a place like this? Taking a bullet to my chest seemed like a better option than rest lying in this hell. I continued to sit with the mike in my hand.

During a commercial break on the channel, I moved my eyes from the camera to discover that the famous TV journalist who had spat all over the place had lied down on his own stains and that his shirt had an all new design on it. Policemen and other media members started to scream “lie down..lie down … do you want to die?” I was in a huge dilemma. Lie or die. Thankfully just then my cameraperson Ajit Kadam realised why I was puzzled. He immediately threw a few pages of a news paper at me and smiled at the famous TV journalist nodding his head in the negative. I felt comforted as I spread the news paper on the ground and stretched myself on top of it. Seeing my effort, all press persons and police officials understood the matter and laughed at him. After giving a few live updates from in from the Taj, I once again reached a back lane of the Taj anticipating that I might meet somebody familiar who could give me fresh updates from inside the hotel. A local public bus was parked in the street and two NSG commandos stood next to it. They had been brought from the Mumbai airport to the Taj in this bus. The commandos looked tired; their eyes had turned red as they had not slept for two continuous nights. Isn’t it paradoxical that our cricket team gets to travel in an AC coach after returning from a foreign land even if they loose the match; and here a commando who could loose his life in this encounter was made to travel in a simple bus used by the local Mumbaikars for daily travelling? One commando looked at me with a smile and spoke in a ‘Haryanvi’ accent- “You are Jitender from Star TV?”

“Yes”

“Did you telecast that our major has died in the operation?”

“Are u talking about major Sandeep Unnikrishnana?”

“Yes, he died while saving an injured commando.”

“How? What had happened?”

“In a confrontation on the first floor, one of our commandos was hit in a round of fire by the assaulters. He fell near the staircase and could not move. The staircase has a way going on both its left and right sides.Regardless of personal safety, Major tried to help the injured commando and chased the terrorists who, meanwhile, tried to escape another floor using the staircase. Two attackers fired at the Major who continuously engaged them. In the encounter that followed, he was shot from the back by a third attacker, got seriously injured and succumbed to his injuries.He was not just our Major, but a friend too.” The commando’s eyes had moistened while he narrated the selfless bravery of his leader. I hesitantly asked him as to why did a lot of them join the forces? Was it for the love of their country or just for a job? The terrorists fought fearlessly because they were fanatical and brainwashed against India, but how and why did you get ready to risk your lives?

“See Jitenderji, I don’t know who’s here for a job and who all are here for the love of their nation. But I can tell you that whoever has joined the force has done it on his own will, knows that he will have to face such situations many times and that he can loose his life. As far as I’m concerned, I believe that we all have to die one day, so why not die a death that is remembered by everyone? Like our Major. He died a death of dignity; he died fighting for his country.” As a few seniors approached him, he shook my hand and left.

By this time the entertainment head of Star News Vibha Kaul Bhat had arrived with her team members Siddharth Hussain, Nishima Jaitley, Soma Vaidya and Joita Mitra. Due to this teams coming, the reporters who’d had been working from before had started to laze a bit. This team had only covered news related to films, TV serials or the glamour world until now. Vibha had in the beginning of her career, experienced the feel of crime reporting but her team was present on a crime-scene like this one for the first time. Covering this attack was nothing less than covering a war and they were pretty excited about it. These reporters had decided on their own that they’d work as crime reporters for the next few days. Soma had found and interviewed a girl who was an eye witness to the killings of Karkare, Kamte and Salaskar. Anchor Shazia Ilmi was also in Mumabi at the time of the attacks and she had also joined the brigade of crime reporters to look for various stories. Shazia’s biggest contribution was the interview of Vijay Salaskar’s assistant Arun Jadhav who was admitted in Bombay Hospital. Jadhav was present in the same Qualis car in which the three Salaskar, Kamte and Karkare were shot at. Because Jadhav had sat in the rear seat and had pretended to die, the terrorists missed him. When the terrorists had surrendered the Qualis and seized a Skoda , that is when Jadhav had called the police control room to inform about the three officers . It was on the basis of his information that the Skoda was stopped at a nakabandi (police checking point) near Girgaon Chowpatty where Kasab was caught and Ismail was killed. Jadhav had narrated this entire incident to Shazia.

This was the first interview on any TV channel of an eye witness who had seen the death of the three police officers this closely. After the telecast of his interview on Star News, hundreds of journalists had run to Bombay hospital to interview Jadhav.

The evening had set in but the operation at the Taj had not finished. I was feeling restless. Sleep and tiredness had set in. Colleagues suggested that I went home and took rest. I appreciated their suggestion because after that, other reporters too could have gone home one by one. I again returned to my grandmother’s house at around 11 pm. I took a bath and rubbed a balm on my forehead as massive headache had set in. I had set an alarm for 6 am and slipped in the bed and subsequently Noida office, police officers and print journalist buzzed my phone one after another. I could not have exercised the choice of switching it off. Finally, I managed to sleep around 3 am and the alarm rung at 6. My body had given up so I lazed till 6:45 am. I felt like sleeping for some more time but realised that I had to relieve the other reporters who had been up all night. I picked up my cousin’s motorcycle and as I rode it to the Taj, I received a message that the operation at the Taj had come to an end. A little sad on not being able to cover the end of the operation which I had covered since its beginning, I took a breath of relief. After 59 hours of siege, the Taj Hotel had finally liberated.

Mayur Parikh informed that there was a furious round of firing in the morning which appeared to be the final assault. The commandos had showered bullets on three windows on the first floor of the Taj behind which the terrorists had hidden. Commandos outside the hotel had also fired at these rooms. 25-30 rounds were fired in return of every round fired by the terrorists. Within sometime, an NSG commando was seen at the window from where the terrorist fired. He threw the dead body of the terrorist from the window which fell in front of hotel. Mayur and Ganesh ran towards the dead body but the commandos outside the hotel had stopped them. Here, Mayur seeked help of his sources in the fire brigade, who on his persistent requests clicked a picture of the terrorist’s dead body on his phone .This picture, was telecasted immediately. Later this official distributed this picture among all media channels. Mayur and Ganesh hugged each other to celebrate the end of the operation. The NSG commandos also started congratulating each other. Deepak Churasia and Umesh Kumawat were giving live chats from the Taj. All terrorists had been killed. I relieved Mayur and Ganesh and it was decided that all morning bulletins to follow would be anchored from the Taj.

While anchoring, I gave live-chats on the conclusion of the operation and the last rites of Hemant Karkare, Major Unnikrishnan and Constable Gajendra Singh. Besides the police force, the citizens of the city participated in the funeral procession of Hemant Karkare. I wanted to be a part of Karkare and Salaskar’s funeral processions, but I had no scope of moving from the Taj. I had slowly relieved the reporters from all three spots. During this time I also realised that it was the 29^th and I had to attend a wedding in Lucknow. I thought that if I could manage an air ticket for late evening, I could attend the wedding. But the problem I faced was that I needed to take permission from Milind Khandekar. Although my entire team had left no stone unturned in a committed coverage of the attacks an we were delivering faster and true stories in comparison of the other channels, but the work had not ended.

We had to work on follow up stories now, look for different stories relating to the witnesses, injured and the policemen that had not been reported in the last`three days. We had to find out how these attacks would get investigated. My conscience was not allowing me to ask for leave. But I had pressure from home and now that the operation had subsided, I could not have made any excuse. I shared my problem with Umesh. He suggested that I go to Lucknow and that he will take care of the follow up story coordination. I hesitantly called up Milind Khandekar and told him that I wanted to go on leave for a day and a half. After getting permission from him, I booked flight tickets and rang up my wife to tell her that we had to fly at 5 pm.

I filed another stories before leaving for home. I made my cameraman sit on the pillion seat of my bike and reached the DB Marg Police station and interviewed the entire team of police officials who had killed Ismail at Chowpatty and captured Kasab. The officers were elated to see me at the police station because after the operations ended at all three places it was only the NSG which was getting all credits and appreciation. One official shook my hand and said “We did not expect that you would come, everyone has forgotten our contribution to the operations. One of our assistant sub inspectors was killed in an encounter on the 26^th. Sanjay Govilkar sir has been shot in the back, he is in the hospital.” A constable informed me that Ajmal Kasab would not have been caught alive without the smartness of Sanjay Govilkar. Actually when the police had stopped the Skoda car which the terrorists had hijacked, the terrorist started firing at the police. The police officials who stood at a barricaded check point fired back at the terrorists. Tukaram Omble died in this crossfire and a bullet fired by Kasab hit Sanjay Govilkar in the back. In retaliation, inspector Bhaskar Kadam fired at Ismail and shot him in the eye. A this time, assistant police inspector Hemant Baavdhankar put his gun to Kasab’s head and just when he was about to pull the trigger, Govilkar screamed and stopped Baavdhankar, “Hey Baavdhya, don’t shoot him.. Catch him alive, he is an evidence..”

Although, Govilkar was dying of pain, he had applied his mind and nobody imagined that his prompt suggestion to his ally Bavdhankar would turn out to be one of the most fruitful decision that night. Bavdhankar had stopped on the suggestion of Govilkar and then Kasab was beaten up badly by the constables. Kasab had already been hit by a bullet in his hand. He had worsened after the police bashed him up. Really this team had done a commendable job. Had they not stopped these two terrorists at the Chowpatty, the two would have caused mayhem at Malabar Hills. Had they killed Kasab, cops would not have got angle on

Pakistans

abetment.

I have covered the ‘Ganpati visarjan’ at the Chowpatty, from under the same foot over bridge for many years, where this encounter had taken place. Many DB Marg Police officials were of the opinion that it was because of Lord Ganeshas blessings that they killed a terrorist and the other one was captivated. After finishing the interview of this team I reached my bureau where Dr Tuli Mangeshikar had been invited to give an interview on the Marathi network Star Majha. She was attending a wedding with her husband at the Taj and was trapped for hours in the hotel. I interviewed the couple and sent it for the Hindi network. This is where my official responsibilities ended for the day and now I dedicated myself to the family.

I reached Lucknow in the evening to attend the wedding and made it to Kanpur for the prayer as well. The same evening I left my wife in Kanpur and came back to Mumbai to resume the coverage of follow-up stories. Police, journalists and the government learnt many lessons from these three days. 10 Pakistani boys had come and shook the nation and exposed all our internal arrangements or the lack of them. Indian security establishment deployed their most learned and sophisticated commandos and it took them three days to kill these miscreants and that too after the sacrifice two officers. India had won yet lost this battle.

………………………………………………………………………………………………

Action after the operation

The attacks had ended on the morning of the 29^th of November, but every bit of what I had seen, heard and feel in those 59 hours didn’t fade out for a month, rather it haunted me. The burning Taj would come in my dreams with sporadic pictures of the Nariman house and sounds of people shrieking. They weren’t nightmares, but would definitely lead to disturbed sleep. The dark circles under my eyes stayed there for 2-3 weeks. A few others reporters had similar psychological and psychosomatic experiences. I felt like leaving the city and going on a vacation for 5-6 days. But it wasn’t possible because new stories had begun to trickle in every day. Sometimes CCTV footages of different areas of the attack would get released or new names of people connected to the attacks would crop up. Star News launched a new show ‘Jitegi Zindagi’(Life will win) where interviews of eyewitnesses and victims were being featured daily.

A week after the attacks, candlelight vigils were organised outside the Gateway. Thousands of people of all ages and economical backgrounds participated in this rally of a sort. Angry citizens carried banners and shouted slogans which clearly suggested that the average Mumbaikar was angrier with the government and the inept politicians than the assaulters. It was for the first time in the history of recent years that such a large number of people had turned out at a spot without a politician force driving the purpose

Many people had sent group messages and decided a time for the rally which was attended by a lot of film personalities too. Thousands of these ordinary people paid homage to the martyrs who laid down their lives during the unprecedented anti-terror operation. “Major Sandip Amar Rahein.”, “Kamte,Salaskar and Karkare are our real heroes”, “Tukaram Omble Amar Rahein” could be heard throughout as people lit candles in the evening and many channels covered live.

………………………………………………………………………………………………

And then they came under the scanner…

The message conveyed by the angry demonstrations of the masses at the Gateway had knocked the central and the state governments for a six. Politicians had become villains by now. In addition to the images of peoples lost faith in their leaders, there were other activities of these politicians that had put them in grave trouble. After the operations, Chief Minister Vilasrao Deshmukh had reached the Taj to take an assessment, but things got out of hand when he arrived in with a film maker Ramgopal Varma and his son Rithesh Deshmukh whose presence was enormously unnecessary. Media tossed questions - Had CM brought along Ram Gopal Verma to give him an idea for his next project? Why was the CM seen with a film maker at a place where hundreds of innocents had died? What was Ritesh doing at the Taj when he didn’t hold any govt rank or have anything to do with the investigations of the case?

Government cameras had shot pictures of the CM and his son with the film maker and distributed among the media. This illogical act had made him a baddie and he kept giving explanations for the next two days. Deputy CM R.R Patil too added salt to the wounds when in a press conference after the attacks, he said “Bade bade shehron merin choti choti batein hoti rehti hain.”(In big cities, minor incidents like this happen.) Actually he had wanted to comment on the two RDX laden bombs recovered by the Mumbai police, which, had they blown would have catapulted the calamity to another level. But his tongue slipped and he could not express himself well in Hindi. He had wanted to imply something else, but it was too late and it caused the damage it had to. He too was criticised and condemned like the CM.

Central Home Minister Shivraj Patil was also weighed down by the media who questioned his arrival at every press conference in fresh clothes. He was rebuked for being busy grooming when civilians were being attacked.

None of them was spared. Deshmukh was expelled and Ashok Chauhan was made the new CM. Similarly, Patil who held two posts, was suspended both. Chaggan Bhujbal was made the new Deputy CM and Jayant Patil swore as home minister. Central home minister Shivraj Patil was also sent home and the charge was handed over to P Chidambaram. Mumbai’s Police Commissioner Hasan Gaffur too could not save his chair as the committee, formed for the investigation of attacks had stated certain hard-hitting reasons stating how the Commissioner could not lead, plan and co-ordinate appropriately. Gaffur was replaced by D Shivanandan.

Mohammed Afroze : A terrorist, a pilot & a politician.

2011-10-16T19:19:00.002+09:00

“Bhujbal Sir, please give me also a chance to visit a foreign country. I am jealous of Mr.M.N.Singh. He got to visit the UK on official expenses.” pleaded Surendra Mohan Shanghari, commissioner of police for Thane city.

“Please mind your words Mr.Shanghari…cant you see so many cameras of media people are shooting us…why do you want to invite unnecessary trouble? Mr.Singh went for investigations & not on a picnic..ok?”

“Yes Sir…yes Sir…I understand. I was just joking.”

The venue was Sahyadri Governemnt Guest House at Malabar Hill & the agenda was terrorism. Chhagan Bhujbal, the then Deputy Chief Minister & incharge of Home portfolio had called for this meeting of senior police officials to discuss further strategy on how to deal with the increasing challenge of terrorism in Maharashtra.

M.N.Singh, the then commissioner of Mumbai Police with his team of other senior officials had just returned from a foreign tour which investigated the high profile “Mohammed Afroz Case”. Before the meeting began, media was given a short photo opportunity to shoot the participants of the meeting. It was at that time that I overheard this conversation between Bhujbal & Shanghari.

What Shanghari pleaded with Bhujbal was not only a taunt on M.N.Singh by his colleague but also a reflection of what most of the top police officials thought about the case. It was an all expenses paid trip by Maharashtra government to investigate the case in foreign countries, however, it yielded nothing. Other senior police officials envied M.N.Singh, who was investigating the case himself.

Mohammed Afroz’s case is one of the most bizarre cases in the recent history of Mumbai Police which had international ramifications. The arrest of Mohammed Afroz, the investigations & later the trial against him were covered by me & it is one of the most interesting terror related cases which I have covered as a journalist.

Mohammed Afroz, a lad residing in Cheetah Camp slums of north-eastern part of Mumbai was picked up from Hotel Abott in Vashi, New Mumbai. Police sources informed that they had got a “big catch”. They had got a terrorist who had planned to conduct a suicide attack in London in the same manner & on the same day when multiple attacks took place on USA on 09-11-2001. When I first got the news, I realized that this was a story on which I have to work for several months & this would also be very competitive as every crime reporter would strive to get something exclusive in this. weird

I found out his residential address in Cheetah Camp and after hacking my way through narrow, stinky & filthy lanes of the slums I reached his house. In that locality which was just a couple of kilometers away from Bhabha Atomic Research Centre (BARC), Afroze’s family seemed to be better off than other slum dwellers & his house could be easily distinguished from other houses. Afroze’s house was a permanent construction made of bricks & finished with plaster & tiles while other houses in the area were constructed with tin, tarpaulins & jute. When I reached his place, his family members behaved were arrogantly with me & refused to speak anything on camera. Irately, they asked me to leave the place. I tried to convince them & pleaded with them for a while but it was of no use. I also told them that if injustice was being done with their son, I will take their side & pressurize the cops to free him. After all my efforts failed, I decided to leave the place, but not before talking to Afroze’s neighbours. After speaking to 3-4 persons in the locality I just managed to get tit bits of Afroze’s personality. He was of very reserved nature & mingled only with few people of his age. One of his neighbor told that he was famous as “Pilot” in the locality as since his childhood Afroze told his friends that he wanted to become a pilot & was also learning to fly in some foreign country. He told me that since last few years most of the time Afroze was out of Mumbai & rarely visited his home at Cheetah Camp. Another neighbor told me that he was of very timid nature. Few months back when Afroze came home for few days somebody robbed him of his gold chain at knife point.

I visited the first court hearing of Mohammed Afroze. Afroze was brought to Esplanade Court, amidst tight security arrangements. His security was parallel to one which is being provided to the Prime Minsiter of India. A pilot police van, then several vans of armed cops, then a big blue van in which Afroze alone was kept, followed by half a dozen other police vehicles led passersby to assume that some “VIP” was traveling. Indeed, for Mumbai Police, Mohammed Afroze was a “VIP accused.” When, Afroze was produced in the court, the police sought his remand on charges of robbery. A fellow journalist satirically remarked- “So much security for a single accused of robbery… I can imagine what Mumbai Police will do when it arrests Dawood Ibrahim. They will order a curfew in the city”.

Mumbai Police got a remand of Afroze for 7 days. One of my police sources who was not part of the investigation team told me that he was booked under charges of “robbery” so that police could get time to interrogate him & then book him for “the real charges”.

Mohammed Afroze was later booked under the then enforced stringent law of Prevention of Terrorism Act (Pota). Sections of Indian Penal Code like waging war against the country were also applied on him.

On 14 December 2002, Mohammed Afroze gave a confessional statement before the court. He said that he was very much aggrieved with the 9-11 attacks in USA & wanted to reveal the truth. Additional Chief Metropolitan Judge V.P.Tawre gave him 4 days time to reconsider his decision & warned him that his voluntary confession could be used against him, but Afroze was adamant. However, he later retracted this statement.

In his confessional stated Mohammed Afroze stated that he was working for an international terrorist organization named Al-Qaeda. He was recruited to this terrorist organization by a radical Islamist named Maulana Mansoor Ilyas who ran a mosque at Victoria, Australia. According to Afroze’s statement, he took flying lessons in 3 countries. He took his initial lessons of flying in Royal Victorian Aero Club in 1997.

After he joined Al-Qaeda, he was asked to take advanced lessons at Tyler International School of Aviation in Texas, USA in 1999 & then in 2000 he joined Cabair College of Air Training at Bedford, UK. He told that his aviation training was funded by his uncle Mubarak Musalaman, who was staying in UK.

Afroze told in his confessional statement that Al Qaeda planned to use his flying expertise to conduct terrorist attacks on UK on 09-11-2001. He met 9-11 attack suspect Mohammed Atta at Iliyas’s residence. There were total 53 guys who were divided into 5 groups. Each of the group was given its target. The targets were World Trade Centre at New York, Pentagon at Washington, DC, Westminister in London, Rialto Towers in Australia & Indian parliament in New Delhi.

Afroze said that he was part of the London group. He alongwith Rashid, Rehman, Kasim, Abbas & Rafique were instructed to board a Manchester bound plane from London’s Heathrow airport & then hijack it. The hijacked plane was to be crashed in the Westminster area of London city. Afroze was assigned the responsibility of commanding officer of the operation. He along with others accomplices reached the Heathrow airport, but as the attacks had already taken place in US, the airport in London was shut down as a precaution. Hence, the operation was aborted. When UK security & intelligence agencies started focusing on the domestic flying schools, Afroze thought it prudent to escape back to India.

The detailed confessional statement of Mohammed Afroze led to multiple questions & sought further investigations on the claims he made & information he revealed. Mohammed Afroze became one of the most high profile terror suspects of India. He was one of the first accused to be arrested under Prevention of Terrorism Ordinance (POTO) which was later withdrawn. To conduct his trial one of the best special prosecutors of Maharashtra Mr.Ujjwal Nikam was appointed. M.N.Singh, the then police commissioner of Mumbai, who had become famous for investigating 1993 Mumbai serial bombing case himself investigated the case.

Several teams were sent to various countries to verify the claims made by Mohammed Afroze. M.N.Singh was heading the team which went to UK. In London he interrogated Mubarak Musalaman, the maternal uncle of Afroze who allegedly financed his aviation training for terror attacks. However, later it came out that most of the countries didn’t co-operate with Mumbai Police teams for unknown reasons. Some were reluctant to allow Mumbai cops to interrogate suspects named by Afroze while others didn’t co-operate in investigating the financial aspects of the case. Counterparts of Mumbai Police in foreign countries also created hindrances citing technical reasons. As a result nothing came out from the foreign visits & no substantial evidences could be gained to collaborate claims made by Afroze in his confessional statement.

Apart from the feeble investigation, there was also a grave legal mess up in the case. Afroze was charged under POTO, but at the time when Afroze conspired to commit the offence, POTO was not in force. Moreover, the accused of POTO were required to be produced before a specially designated court, but Afroze was being produced before a Maharashtra Control of Organised Crime Act (MCOCA) judge A.Bhangale. Also, some of the charges leveled on him didn’t match with the sections of POTO.

Although, the charges under POTO were withdrawn from Afroze, he was charged with several other sections of Indian Penal Code (IPC).

Sections of IPC under which Afroze was charged.	What the sections read.
121-A.	Conspiracy to wage or abetting to waging of war against Government of India.
120-B	Criminal Conspiracy as defined by Section 120-A of IPC.
126	Committing depredation on territories of Power at peace with Government of India.
467	Forgery of valuable security, will etc.

However, the results post trial were a big blow for the prosecution. Afroze was acquitted from 2 major charges of conspiracy for waging war against India (121-A) & criminal conspiracy (120-B) He was convicted for depredation (126) & forging his higher secondary school certificate for the purpose of acquiring pilot’s licence. He was sentenced 8 years of imprisonment, but soon got bail & filed an appeal in Bombay High Court against his conviction.

“This was the first criminal case which I handled independently as a law professional.” recollected Afroze’s lawyer Advocate Mubin Solkar, who became my friend while I was covering the trial. Advocate Solkar was just 23 years old & had finished his studies of law only few months before he got this assignment. It was not an easy assignment for a beginner which was much hyped by the media & was being observed by security & intelligence agencies of several countries of the world.

“Many lawyers refused to take up this case viewing its seriousness & nobody had prior experience of fighting a legal battle under POTO which was recently passed by the central government. I took this as a challenge.”

The challenged worked positively for Advocate Solkar right from the beginning. During one of the initial hearings, the prosecution informed the court that they are withdrawing charges of POTO. Later, acquittal of Afroze from major charges added more feathers to Advocate Solkar’s cap & he earned an image of a reliable criminal lawyer in the legal fraternity of Mumbai in his very first assignment.

I was one of the first journalists to interview Mohammed Afroze after he was released. While talking on my camera in a small room of a social organization Aman Committee at Crawford Market, Afroze declared that his first priority would be to absolve himself from the remaining charges for which he was convicted. He vowed to lead his life as a law abiding citizen & will work for the betterment of his community.

In the later years Afroze set up a unit at Navi Mumbai for manufacturing & exporting leather goods. My next meeting with him was in October 2004, when he contested Maharashtra state assembly elections as an independent candidate. Wearing a white Pathani suit Afroze didn’t look different from other politicians. The timid looking, vulnerable boy of Cheetah Camp slums was now know as “Afroze bhai” (Brother Afroze) in the locality after his jail stint. After being released out of jail, Afroze got an idea of how much “publicity” he attracted & how media had made him “famous” in the locality. He was surprised to see that even the Yoga session which he attended in prison was published as a big news in the newspapers. Overwhelmed by such media coverage, Afroze considered the advise of friends and relatives that he should “encash his fame”. Afroze decided to contest the next assembly elections from Trombay constituency of Mumbai city. Trombay was one of those constituencies where there were significant number of voters from Muslim community (Out of total 488000 voters, 225000 voters were Muslims.) He first approached Samajwadi Party(SP) & then Congress & Rashtravadi Janta Party(RJD), but nobody appeared to be inclined to back the candidature of a former accused of terrorism.

After approaching all the parties claiming to be secular and pro minorities, Afroze settled to contest the elections as an independent candidate.

“Why will people vote for you?” I asked.

“If I win I will take up the issue of proper water and electricity supply in the area. I have been born & brought up in this locality and I am aware of the problems here. People in the locality will surely vote for a candidate who knows them & who has a plan to solve their problems.” Afroze retorted like a confident politician. Mohammed Afroze’s candidature was reported widely in media & he was listed among the candidates with criminal records. The results of Assembly elections brought bad news for Afroze. He lost the election, but managed to get 5000 votes, which surprised many.

Mohammed Afroze is not in news now. His dates of court on appeal against conviction are also no longer covered by the media. Afroze didn’t contest any elections after 2004 & nor he gives any interviews to television channels. Most of the new generation journalists covering crime & terrorism are not aware of Mohammed Afroze’s story. However, this case has been registered in the history of Indian counter terror operations as a lucid illustration of how Indian authorities lacked in dealing with a case. It not only exposes the legal acumen of Indian investigating agencies but also depicts a diplomatic failure of Indian government, which was unsuccessful in persuading the foreign governments to sincerely assist the investigations. Many questions still remain unanswered, like, what happened to other guys who allegedly took training with Afroze? Where are those guys? What is Mubarak Musalman doing? Where is Maulana Mansoor Ilyas now?

Underworld & terrorism: A deadly handshake.

2011-10-16T19:15:00.002+09:00

While in the decade of 1990s police faced the worst challenge from underworld, the new decade arriving with a new century marked its beginning with a fresh confrontation, the confrontation with terrorist organizations. Although, the underworld works purely for money and terrorist organizations to pursue their radical ideologies, the nexus between the two is multifaceted and has dangerous ramifications. There are many things common in both. Both underworld and terrorism thrive on killings and threatening. Both use violence as a means to convey messages to their targets. Both take advantage of the cracks in the security system. In several cases most of them have recruited members from the vulnerable sections of the society. Whether it an underworld gang or a terrorist organization, the masterminds always stay far away from the actual area of operations. In Indian context, it has been observed in several cases that both use each other to meet their ends. Sometimes they play each others role too.

Dawood Ibrahim and serial bombings of 1993 in Mumbai.
Till 1993 the fugitive gangster of India Dawood Ibrahim Kaskar was just seen as a dangerous criminal, the boss of an organized crime gang in Mumbai which extorted money from businessman, film stars, builders and also smuggled gold and silver. Dawood’s image was of a ruthless man who never spared his enemies & brutally killed those who confronted them. He was seen as a person with high political connections within the ruling party and paid heavy bribe to senior police and government officials to win their loyalty. Although, after escaping to Dubai in 1984, his gang continuously grew stronger in Mumbai and also to other cities of India. Although, Dawood was a Muslim, he had several Hindu gang members including Chota Rajan who later turned out to be his deadliest enemy. Religion had nothing to do with gang activities. Everybody worked for money to lead an extravagant life. However, this perception changed after serial bombings in the city of Mumbai on March 12 1993. From an “underworld Don”, Dawood acquired another designation- “Terrorist.”

The 12 March 1993 blasts of Mumbai were preceded by unprecedented riots between Hindus & Muslims after the demolition of Babri structure in Ayodhya. Hundreds of members from both the communities were killed. It was alleged that Mumbai Police played a biased role during the riots and targeted only a single community. The area around South Mumbai’s Pakmodia street where Dawood grew up also witnessed heavy violence. It is reported that Dawood whose majority of gang members belonged to Muslim community was moved by the pleas of the residents of his locality to take “revenge”. Secondly, Dawood himself was feeling uneasy and insecure in Dubai with the strengthening of diplomatic relations between the government of India and United Arab Emirates. Till then there was no extradition treaty between the two governments and Dawood took advantage of this. However, things were changing and Dawood feared that sooner or later he might be handed over to India. Hence, he wanted to shift his base to Pakistan. While Dawood needed somebody to shelter him Pakistan, Pakistan’s Inter Service Intelligence (ISI) was also looking for Muslim radicals in India to conduct acts of terrorism. A meeting between Dawood & senior ISI officials was arranged by few Pakistani businessmen based in Dubai. The meeting resulted in quid pro quo. ISI promised to relocate Dawood Ibrahim, his family members, his key gangsters in Karachi and in turn Dawood will assist ISI in planning and executing anti India operations.

The first material outcome of this deadly coalition was seen in the form of terrorist attack in Mumbai. Dawood had developed an infrastructure of smuggling gold and silver on the coastline of Maharashtra around the city of Mumbai. He had recruited several people in his smuggling syndicate who worked as motor boat and trawler operators. The incharge of this racket was Dawod’s trusted man Tiger Memon who operated from a plush office in South Mumbai’s gold market Zaveri Bazar.

Dawood called Tiger to his Dubai residence alongwith Dawood Taklya who operated trawlers at Raigarh coast. They were informed about the conspiracy and asked to participate in it. Tiger was delighted to hear this as he himself sought revenge after his office in Mahim area was burnt down by rioters.

As per the plan RDX and other weapons were loaded on a Pakistani ship at the instance of ISI and moved towards. Tiger Memon alongwith the help of Dawood Taklya faced no problem while facilitating the consignment at Raigarh coast as they had already bribed senior custom officials and policeman deployed on duty.

On the afternoon of 12 March 1993, bombs exploded at 13 different locations of Mumbai city killing 257 people and injuring around 750. The targets included mostly crowded areas like Zaveri Bazar, Century Bazaar, Sea Rock Hotel, Centaur Hotel, Air India building, Plaza cinema hall, airport and Bombay Stock Exchange. This was the first major terrorist attack in India outside Jammu-Kashmir & Punjab states where terrorism was at its peek that time.

Investigations and arrests after the blasts exposed the role of Dawood Ibrahim and his gang. The blasts were the first example where the underworld was used to execute a terrorist attack. Statements by several accused produced in the special TADA court where trial was conducted are treated as an evidence and Dawood Ibrahim has been proclaimed as accused number 1 in this case. A red corner notice has been issued by Interpol against Dawood & his brother Anees Inrahim. Dawood has been almost in all the agendas of diplomatic talks between India and Pakistan. However, just like Osama bin Laden, Pakistan is denying that Dawood is on its soil. Infact, after the operation by Navy SEALS in Abbotabad which killed Al Qaeda chief Osama, there was an urge by several groups that India should also conduct a similar operation in Karachi and eliminate Dawood Ibrahim.

Post 1993 blasts Dawood apparently became stronger & more fearsome. He eliminated several of his rival gang members in Mumbai and also made an unsuccessful attempt on Chota Rajan in Bangkok who left his gang after the bomb blasts. It is reported that his family has established matrimonial relations with top ISI & army officials of Pakistan and it is very unlikely for Pakistan’s military and intelligence establishment to allow any harm to his interests.

Riyaz Bhatkal & Indian Mujahideen.

“So are you going to pay up or not?”
“I have told that this much amount is not possible for me. Please dont be so cruel. I beg please consider my problem. I am not as rich as you think.”
“Ok...ok..then get ready to go back to the crematorium. I know you have just returned from there after cremating your body guard.. Now you will again go back there and this time you will not go there on your own legs. Your relatives will carry your body on their shoulders.I have lost my cool now. No money for me means no life for you...ok?”
--
These are the excerpts of an audio conversation which a source delivered to me in 2003. The person being threatened in this conversation is a small time businessman of ready to eat snacks from Mumbai’s suburb Kurla and has just returned from the funeral of his personal security guard who was shot dead a day earlier. The person one the other line was Riyaz Bhatkal whose shooters had killed the businessman’s body guard. Bhatkal was very clear to him- pay up or get killed. Such calls had become a menace for numerous small time traders of Kurla, Sion and Ghatkopar area in 2002 and 2003. The newly emerged RN gang had become a headache for the cops. R stood for Riyaz Bhatkal and N stood for his accomplice Nassir. Whenever anyone from the duo called up somebody for extortion he will introduce himself as RN. Like any other criminal gang they adopted the policy of kill one and scare hundred to extort money. Cops were treating complaints against them just like complaints against other gangsters indulged in extortion. However, case of RN was different. Very soon the Riyaz was to emerge as the dreaded terrorist who aspired to organize bloodshed throughout India.

Riyaz Bhatkal’s original name is Riyaz Shahbandri. He met Nassir while working for Fazlu Rehman gang who operated in suburban Mumbai and Delhi. In late 2002 they decided to leave Fazlu’s gang and operate on their own. Picking up the initials of their names, they named their gang as RN.

Riyaz came from a small town of Bhatkal in the state of Karnataka. It is a communally sensitive town and has seen number of clashes between Hindu and Muslim communities during the past decade. Riyaz was infamous as a criminal in Bhatkal committing petty crimes. He moved to Mumbai at the behest of Fazlu. As the cops started pursuing him, he abandoned the operations of his newly formed gang and moved to Pune where he met Islamic extremists. After moving to Pune, Riyaz’s focus of life changed from making money to working for “the cause”. Although, Riyaz was not much educated, but he displayed good oratory and leadership skills.
Hence, he was assigned the task of setting up a terrorist organization and recruiting members for it.
Riyaz Bhatkal’s name as a terrorist first appeared in a press conference of Mumbai Police’s crime branch in 2008. Police informed that Riyaz was one of the masterminds behind the series of blasts which rocked several major cities of India that year.

Aftab Ansari: Terrorist who wanted to become Dawood Ibrahim.
Aftab Ansari @ Farhan Mallik is another example of a man who had a dual profile of a gangster and a terrorist. Ansari who once aspired to become as big as underworld don Dawood Ibrahim, is now languishing in jail after awaiting his death penalty to be executed which he got for masterminding Kolkata’s American Centre attack on 22 January 2002. In that attack 6 policemen were killed and around 20 people were injured. It was a terrorist attack intended to threaten the US and to warn India against getting closer to the US.

Aftab Ansari graduated in underworld with crimes like extortion, kidnappings and attempt to murder. His areas of operations were mostly cities Delhi, Kolkata and adjacent areas. Once when Aftab Ansari was arrested for some offence and sent to Tihar jail, he met Sayyed Omar Shaikh who was the leader of Jaish-E-Mohammed. Omar Shaikh was released from jail in exchange of hostages from the hijacked plane of Indian Airlines, but before Omar moved out the prison he made a deal with Aftab Ansari. The deal was that Jaish E Mohammed will allow Ansari to use its network of Hawala and weapons supply for his gang activities and in return Ansari will help Jaish E Mohammed in recruitment of youths for conducting its terrorist activities. It is reported that a part of money obtained as ransom from the abduction of Kolkata based businessman Parth Roy Burman was sent to Jaish –E-Mohammed by Aftab Ansari. The same money was provided to 9/11 plotter Mohammed Atta.

On the instructions of Jaish-E-Mohammed, Aftab Ansari planned an attack on American Centre in Kolkata. He ordered his shooters to target the policemen guarding the centre in the morning at a time when the shifts were being changed. This daily routine was carefully observed and studied by the shooters. Riding on two motorbikes they raided the centre and started indiscriminate firing from their AK-47 rifles which were arranged by Jaish-E-Mohammed. After the bloodbath assailants fled from the spot.

The investigations not only challenged Indian security agencies but also raised concerns from the US. This was the second major terrorist attack on India just a month after Parliament was attacked on December 13, 2001. After detentions of around 50 suspects and enormous efforts by intelligence agencies it was revealed that Aftab Ansari plotted this attack in connivance with Jaish-E-Mohammed. It was found that Ansari was living in Dubai on a fake Pakistani passport. A CBI team was sent to Dubai and after diplomatic efforts, Aftab Ansari was sent back to India by U.A.E authorities. 3 weeks after the attack, the mastermind was behind the bars.

Why police starts hunting for automobile thieves after every blasts?

Automobile thieves and underworld gangs have a long time “business relations.” Whenever underworld has to kidnap, kill or injure somebody, they use motor cycles or cars which have been stolen. Every gang has a dedicated team of automobile thieves attached to them. They steal the vehicle as per the demand by the gang and deliver it to the gang member who has been assigned to conduct a shootout or kidnapping. The vehicle is abandoned as soon as the operation is executed. The reason behind gangsters using stolen vehicles is that it becomes difficult for cops to trace the perpetrators of the crime.

During last few years it has been revealed in the investigations that just like underworld, terrorist organizations are also using automobile thieves for their acts. In fact, underworld has introduced this modus operandi to the terrorist organizations. The extensive role of automobile thieves to support terrorist acts came out during the investigations of Ahmedabad blasts in 2008.

21 bomb explosions rocked the west Indian city of Ahmedabad on 26 July 2008. In a span of around 70 minutes 56 people were killed and over 200 were injured. Among the targets was also a civil hospital where explosive laden car was parked. The very next day explosives were found in four wheelers in another city of Surat, not very far from Ahmedabad. Terrorist had planned a similar serial bombings in Surat also, but fortunately none of the bombs in Surat exploded due to technical errors while manufacturing them. During the investigations it was found that vehicles used in Ahmedabad and Surat were stolen from New Mumbai.

Crime branch of Mumbai Police, who was conducting a parallel investigation in the case played a major role in detecting Ahmedabad blast case. Cops got a lead in their investigations while assessing the call records and movements of a notorious dealer in stolen automobiles Raju Soni. Soni used to buy stolen cars and motor cycles from car thieves of Mumbai, Thane and New Mumbai and sell them after forging documents and registration plates in neighboring states of Rajasthan and Gujarat. Soni was arrested several times earlier for abetting automobile theft cases. “We got to know of the automobile thieves who supplied vehicles to terrorist by keeping an eye on the people who interacted with Soni”told Inspector Nandkumar Gopale.from the crime branch. The trail led to an Indian Mujahideen operative Afzal Usmani, who had ordered the thieves to steal the cars and deliver it to him. Afzal Usmani was a close associate of Indian Mujahideen’s founding member Riyaz Bhatkal and worked with him since the days when both were affiliated to Fazlu gang. Duo defected from Fazlu gang in 2003 and started their own gang named RN to extort money from small and middle class traders.

When Afzal Usmani was arrested in an organized crime case in 2005, he was put behind the bars in Arthur Road Jail of Mumbai. During his jail stint, Usmani met an auto mobile thief Mohammed Mobin Khan @ Irfan. In early 2008 after being released on bail, Usmani on the instructions of Riyaz Bhatkal asked Irfan to steal four cars for terrorist attacks in Ahmedabad and Surat. Accordingly, Irfan accompanied by his cousin Ayub Shaikh stole 4 cars from July 7, 2008 to July 14, 2008. A Wagon R car which belonged to Narsappa Nageshwar, a resident of Panvel in New Mumbai was parked by Afzal Usmani himself with explosives at Ahmedabad Civil Hospital on the day of blasts. Second car was a Maruti-800 which belonged to Rajkumar Oberoi of Nerul area was used to explode the bomb at L.G.Hospital in Ahmedabad, third car belonging to Pradeep Vaylar of Panvel was found aboandoned with explosives in Surat. The fourth car which was owned by Neeta Madhav residing in Vashi area of New Mumbai was also found abandoned with explosives in Surat city.

Although, Afzal Usmani was arrested in 2008 itself, it is a coincident that Maharashtra Anti Terrorist Squad announced the arrest of car thieves Irfan and Ayub just a day before triple bombings in Mumbai on 13-07-2011. Interestingly, in this case also investigating agencies have concluded that a stolen 2 wheeler was used for the blast in Zaveri Bazar area.

Encounter Specialists: Men who dealt with terrorists, the underworld style.
“Encounter Specialists”, there is no such official position, rank or designation in the various police forces of India. However, most of the police organizations in several cities of the country have a set of selected police officers who are known within and outside the force as encounter specialists. They are not the officers who have received any special commando training, but they specialize in cases where there is direct confrontation with the criminals. They are the killing machines for a police force. They apprehend the criminal, they conduct their own trial and they proclaim and execute the punishment that is death. Such encounter specialists have been used by various police forces in India as an instrument of counter terror. The most famous and infamous encounter specialist officers in India have been from Mumbai. Mumbai’s case study depicts how effective they were once in combating underworld and terrorism and how they turned out to be a double edged swords.

Decade of 90s brought some of the most challenging years for Mumbai Police in the past century. Shootouts were rampant, gangster called to extort money & killed those who didn’t pay up. It seemed that mafia was ruling the city & law & order machinery went haywire. The scenario was somewhat similar to what it is today in Mexico. To control the underworld, government came up with a stringent law Maharashtra Control of Organised Crime Act (MCOCA). Under this law it is not easy to acquire bail for an accused & he or she has to languish behind the bars for a longer period of time. MCOCA also armed the cops with extra ordinary powers. Hundreds of accused under this law have been booked in a single decade. However, this law alone didn’t seem enough to terrify & deter the mobsters from the daily bloodbath. Hence, the police then decided to go the extra judicial way. Based on the thought- “Poison neutralizes the effect of poison.” Mumbai Police came up with the unofficial policy of “encounters.” Hundreds of suspected gang members were picked up & killed. Every time such a killing of suspect took place, the cops claimed that they were attacked first & the suspect died when cops fired in retaliation. Almost in every “encounter” this story was used to justify the killings.

During the tenure of D.Sivanandhan (the then Chief of Crime branch of Mumbai Police) alone 238 suspected gangsters from various gangs were eliminated. Later on the cops reduced the intensity of its operation & came up with “one shootout, one encounter policy.” This policy meant that whenever a gang killed some citizen, the cops will pick up & kill any member from that gang which was suspected behind the shootout. Human rights activist might not concur with me, but the bitter reality is that this unofficial policy of “encounters” worked for the cops & was successful in controlling the terror of underworld to a great extent. At least in the first decade of 21st century the activities of underworld gangs were relatively very low.

Before the Anti Terrorist Squads were established by various states, mostly terror related cases were handled by the crime branch of the city or state police. In case of Mumbai police such cases were dealt by the same elite team of encounter specialists who were originally entrusted with the responsibility of eliminating the gangsters. Following are some of the encounters, which are attributed to these officers:

+ On March 29, 2003 a crime branch team gunned down 3 alleged members of Lashkar-E-Taiyyba in broad daylight at Jogeshwari, a suburb of western Mumbai. The team reported that all 3 terrorist died when police team retaliated to their firing from Ak-56 rifles and a pistol. The police recovered an AK-56 assault rifle, 2 star pistols, several compact discs and diaries.

+ On 22-08-2006 a Pakistani named Abu Osama was killed by police in an encounter. Police team had arrested his accomplice Riyaz Nawabuddin a day earlier and on his information went to search for Osama. The cops claimed that Osama was hiding in a central government employee’s residential colony and fired on police team when he was asked to surrender. Osama died when police fired in retaliation.

+ In September 2003 crime branch team killed one Nassir who was suspected to be one of the masterminds of 25 August 2003 twin blasts in Mumbai which killed around 60 people at Gateway of India and Zaveri Bazar of Mumbai. The encounter took place outside Ruparel College of Matunga area in central Mumbai. Crime branch team recovered arms & a car from the spot.

In all the above 3 cases, same officers participated in the encounters who had earlier killed dozens of gangsters in the past.

Now, let us look at the dark side of this policy. The policy of “encounters” led to the rise of a special breed of police officers known as “encounter specialist.” These were the officers with strong network of informants in the underworld & had the tacit authority to conduct extra judicial killings of the suspected gangsters. They enjoyed extra ordinary powers & shared good rapport with senior officials. Infact, most of the superior officials relied on these encounter specialists to update themselves on the latest equations in the underworld. By killing suspected gangsters they became public heroes & received wide media attention including the international media. Every encounter specialist officer proudly boasted the number of gangsters he had killed. Films were made on the life stories of several encounter specialist officers. However, their days of glory lasted only for few years. It is alleged that most of such officers took undue advantage of their position in the police force & rapport with their bosses. They became corrupt, got affiliated with one gang or the other, started killing people for money, extorted money from builders & businessmen etc. This led to tremendous negative publicity & judicial intervention. Public heroes were now seen as villains. Almost all the encounter specialists were arrested & send behind the bars on charges of corruption, murder, extortion, custodial deaths & so on. Today there are no encounter specialist officers. Such officers were over confident that their superiors would come to their rescue & they could get away, but now they claim that they were “used & thrown.”

As described earlier, the “policy of encounters” has yielded results only in the context of underworld and it has failed to deter terrorist groups. Underworld is not as fierce now as it was in the decade of 90s, but fears of bomb blasts and shootouts by terrorists still haunt the city. Fear of death couldn’t deter a terrorist from his mission who has decided to become a “Fidayeen” (like in the case of 26 November 2008 Mumbai attacks where all the terrorists were told to die while fighting.) However, in any case such policy has proven itself to be a double edged sword. Moreover, considering the fate of earlier encounter specialist officers, not many police officers now would prefer to be labeled as an encounter specialist. After Mumbai blasts on July 13, 2011 when I asked a police officer attached with the crime branch of Mumbai Police whether he would volunteer to become one, he said- “No way… I have wife & children at home. My parents are old & sick. I have to earn daily bread for them & I don’t want to go to the jail.”

Counter Terrorism & electronic media.

2011-10-16T19:12:00.003+09:00

The begining of my career coincided with electronic media revolution in

India

which took off in the decade of 90s. I started my career as a junior reporter in a 20 minutes daily news capsule which was produced by a private production house and aired by government owned television channel Doordarshan. This production house later transformed itself into a 24 hours news channel and few years later it launched few more such channels. The style, manner of presentation, choice of words and selection of the content appealed to Indian masses, which till few years back had no option other than Doordarshan. Private news channels came up with choices for people, they facilitated to provide the people point of views other than that of the government’s. People got an alternative against government’s instrument of propaganda. As the popularity of private news channels increased, their number multiplied. This led to a media revolution in the country. It was the revolution which influenced the lifestyle and the thinking of people, the revolution which supported campaigns against corruption, the revolution which influenced all the 3 arms of the government, the revolution which campaigned to save life of a poor farmer’s son who fell into a deep pitch dug up for a borewell and it was the revolution which showed terrorist attacks live non stop for hours.

As a television journalist I have covered around 9 terrorist attacks including 26 November 2008 multiple attacks on Mumbai. The fiercest criticism of news coverage by television channels has been from none other than a variant of media, the print media.
Accusations have been made that electronic media has been insensitive towards the victims and their families, news channels indulge in speculation and rumor mongering, they sensationalize trivial information and while covering attacks they unknowingly support the terrorist organizations by showing the action live. While you cannot dismiss all such allegations as baseless and exaggerated, it will be an error to tag the role of electronic media as damaging to the counter terror efforts. In fact, 24 hours news channels have played a role which has supported the agencies involved in counter terrorism and have also played supportive role in the judicial process of such cases. Moreover, most of the allegations levelled on electronic media are also valid for the other forms of popular media.

Taking case study of 26/11 Mumbai attacks alone there are several instances where electronic media has demonstrated a very positive role right from the beginning. Few weeks after the attacks J.P.Dutta, the chief of National Security Guards (NSG) admitted in an interview to a weekly magazine that it was due to news channels he got an idea that the attacks in Mumbai was not just a petty gangwar, but a terrorist attack. After seeing visuals on television and listening to the information that hundreds of rounds have been fired (which is unusual in a gangwar), he started his preparations to move to Mumbai, hours before he got an official order to do so.

In was due to the continuous coverage of news channels that the world got an idea of the magnitude of attacks in Mumbai. People rushed to hospitals to donate blood after it was announced in news channels that victims of the attacks were facing shortage of blood.

During the attacks, few terrorists got in touch with a national news channel and spoke of their demands which were tutored to them by their handlers. The airing of conversation between news anchors and the terrorist was strongly criticized, but it was due to this conversation that investigating agencies were first able to analyze the accents of terrorists and concluded that they belonged to Punjab province of Pakistan. Moreover, later during the trial, the editor of that news channel deposed as a witness. While punishing accused Ajmal Amir Kasab, the special court acknowledged the testimony of that editor. Photojournalists of several publications who had clicked pictures of Kasab and his accomplice Ismail at CST station also deposed as witnesses in the court.

Post attack it was due to analysis and aggressive coverage by the news channels that the lack of preparedness of security forces and lax attitude of ruling politicians was exposed.
Media became an instrument of ventilation of public anger thereby preventing any other form of reaction by the public which has been provoked several times earlier.

However, while covering terrorist attacks media has bungled too. A day after 26 November attacks, few news channels again started flashing that a fresh group of terrorist had attacked CST railways station and other locations in south Mumbai. However, this turned out be a rumor. Similarly, on 25 August 2003 when bomb blasts happened at Gateway of India and Mumbadevi Temple of Mumbai, it was reported that 4 blasts have happened instead of 2. This was a result of the initial confusion as one of the locations where blast took place was known with more than one name. (Blast outside Mumbadevi Temple was also reported as blast in Zaveri Bazar because geographically both are adjacent to each other. The closest railway station to this spot was Marine Lines, which was taken as the third location.) However, all the news channels corrected themselves within few minutes.
It is true that news channels in their endeavor to lead with visuals and information often compromise with credibility unintentionally during such events.

The role of electronic media while covering the attacks was also discussed by the security agencies. Concerns were raised on the live coverage of commando operations at Nariman House. It was pointed out that media coverage was helping the handlers of terrorists stationed in Pakistan. The handlers were able to know the strategies and positioning of the commandos from the footage shown on television and they instructed their men accordingly. It was decided that in case of such attacks in future the access to media on location will be controlled and live coverage of the attacks will be discouraged. However, News Broadcasters Association(NBA) a self regulatory body is expected to play a decisive role during such events.

Another confrontation between media and law enforcement agencies was seen post triple bombings in Mumbai on 13-07-2011. After the blasts most of the news channels started procuring cctv and mobile phone shot footages from the blast sites. Television is a medium of visuals and such footage add to credible story telling and making viewers comprehend the sequence of events. As soon as the channels started flashing the video, Anti Terrorist Squad(ATS) of Maharashtra state faxed a note to all the news channels which worded- “ This is earnest plea to the media to not publish, display or telecast any cctv footage or cctv coverage of the bomb blasts incidents dated 13/07/2011, that is unfortunately being telecast in certain television channels. Doing so may lead to the disclosure of identity of the witnesses in this important case leading to the exposure of such witnesses. This case is being investigated under Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, 1967 amended in 2008 and there are several provisions in this act to protect the identity of witnesses. Hence, in the view of above investigation such request is being made.”

Although, “the earnest request” made by the ATS was acknowledged by NBA and its member channels, the same was followed by a court order next day which strictly warned the channels against showing any cctv footage.

India news channels (except 2) followed a similar diktat post 26-11-2008 Mumbai attacks when video recording of the interrogation of accused Ajmal Amir Kasab was leaked. At the same time cctv footages of Taj and Oberoi Hotels and audio conversations between the terrorists and their handlers in

Pakistan

also reached some news channels. However, news channels were not able to utilize them much as the ATS restricted their airing by marking such material as evidence. The case also exposed the internal rift existing within Mumbai Police.

Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCP) Viswas Nagre Patil was one of the first police officers to respond to the attack on Taj Hotel on the night of 26 November. He challenged the terrorists by holding a simple revolver in his hand not aware that terrorists had advanced weapons and loads of hand grenades with them. He lost one of his man in the initial encounter. All this action was being recorded by the cctv cameras installed at the hotel. Few weeks later, DCP Patil organized a press conference to give details on the security of hotels in his jurisdiction; however, upon being requested by some journalists he also officially provided them the copy of cctv footage of Taj Hotel. When news channels started relaying that footage, it irked many other senior police officials of Mumbai Police. They believed that by distributing cctv footage to media DCP Patil was trying to portray himself as a hero because the footage only showed him confronting the terrorists. Serious objection was raised especially by the crime branch which was investigating the case. The crime branch planned to nail the DCP on charges of indiscipline and leaking the evidence. Accordingly, summons were issued to the news channels asking them to depose before the crime branch and tell the name of the person from whom they procured the footage.

Media refused to respond to the summons of the crime branch. For some media persons it seemed ridiculous that one arm of the police was providing them cctv footage and another arm was asking from where did they get it. Such action by the crime branch exposed the lack of co-ordination, lack of communication, internal rivalry and jealousy prevalent in the police force. At the first place, police should have internally decided whether to provide such footage to media or not and secondly, once the footage was aired then there was no point in harassing media persons to settle personal scores. After political intervention the matter was put to rest and no statement from media persons was recorded.
Another case which highlights the role of media in terrorism related cases is that of e-mails sent by terrorist organization Indian Mujahideen. To multiply the impact of its terrorist actions Indian Mujahideen realized the utility of electronic media. It created a media cell for its one way communication with news channels. Indian Mujahideen used e-mails to own up responsibility for the bomb blasts it executed in various cities of India during 2008. One of its first e-mails was sent 5 minutes before the serial bombings in the city of Ahmedabad on 26 July 2008. Through that e-mail sent to a national Hindi news channel, Indian Mujahideen claimed that it was avenging the killings of Muslims during Gujarat riots of 2002. After analyzing the mail it was concluded that the content of mail which ran upto 14 pages was generated by somebody who appeared to be well educated, had good command over English language, kept track of current affairs and had enormous hatred in his mind which was reflected from the choicest of abuses he used in the mail. During the investigations it was found that the email was sent by hacking wi-fi network of an American named Ken Heywood residing in New Mumbai. Media cell kept on sending emails to news channels after every bombing by adopting the same modus operandi till 4 of its members were arrested in September 2008 by the crime branch of Mumbai Police.

News channels have co-operated with the investigating agencies and have forwarded the emails of Indian Mujahideen to them as soon as they were received. Such emails played a key role in tracing and apprehending few members of the terrorist organization.

The Indian electronic media is in a nascent stage and is still learning. Like the US and western media, Indian news channels also now refrain from showing graphic visuals of dead, blood and human remains on the spot of terrorist attacks and protect identities of witnesses and minor victims. Many news channels have decided that henceforth no platform will be provided to any terrorist or gangster and their live interviews will not be shown. With the time channels have also understood that late news is always better than wrong news.

References & further readings.

2011-10-16T19:10:00.002+09:00

Chapter-1: US Counter Terrorism Strategy in Indian Perspective.

“Celebrating bin Laden’s killing” by Petula Dvorak (Washington Post, 02/05/2011)

Department of Homeland Security’s official website. (http://www.dhs.gov/index.shtm)

Central Bureau of Investigations’ (CBI) official website.(www.cbi.gov.in/index.php)

“Finally, govt clears central terror agency, tougher laws.” (Times of India, 16/12/2008)

“If US can after 9/11, Why cant India after 26/11?” by V.Balachandran. (Times of India, 15/07/2011)

“Mumbai Attacks: Failure of commands” (The Hindu, 22/01/2010)

“The Joint Terrorism Task Force-A concept that works.” by Robert.A.Martin.(http://www.adl.org/learn/jttf/default.asp)

“IB ex chief’s gangster friend arrested.” (Times of India, 11/07/2005)

NCTC plan back in focus after Mumbai blasts. (Times of India, 22/07/2011)

“A New Architecture for India’s Security.”-P.Chidambaram (http://www.outlookindia.com/article.aspx?263495)

bibliography

Interview of ex NSG chief J.K.Dutta by Harinder Baweja.(Tehelka magazine, 20/06/2009)

“Terror on TV or Terror by TV?” by Rashmi Sehgal (http://infochangeindia.org/agenda/reporting-conflict/terror-on-tv-or-by-tv.html)

Official website of Federal Bureau of Information. (http://www.fbi.gov/)

“Times Square arrest raises US security questions.” by Tony Karon, 05/05/2010.

“Times Square bomber gets life sentence. Warns of more attacks.”Geraldine (Seattle Times, 05/10/10)

“Faisal Shahzad: violent, fanatic or unhappy home owner?” by Charles Lane. (Washington Post, 06/05/2010.)

Official website of United States Marshals Service. (http://www.usmarshals.gov/witsec/index.html)

Zaveri Bazar and Gateway blast verdict. (DNA, 26/07/2009)

“It is crucial to win confidence of witnesses.” (Hindustan Times, 24/01/2011.)

PATRIOT ACT-American Civil Liberties Union. (http://www.aclu.org/national-security/usa-patriot-act)

“FBI chief urges renewal of PATRIOT Act measures.”(Washington Post, 26/03/2009)

Battle looms over Patriot Act. (New York Times, 19/09/2009)

US Congress passes extension of PATRIOT Act wiretap provision. (Business Week, 27/05/2100)

“Black Friday: the true story of Bombay bomb blasts.” by Hussain Zaidi.(Published in 2002)

“Its good bye to POTA” (Rediff.com, 18/09/2004)

Operation Nexus.( http://www.nypdshield.org/public/nexus.nypd)

Whu Mumbai burnt & Bhiwandi didn’t? (Marathi) by Suresh Khopade ( October 2010, Sneh Prakashan)

Death for 3 in 2003 Mumbai blasts case. (The Hindu, 07/08/2009)

Official website of John Jay College, Center on Terrorism. (http://www.jjay.cuny.edu/centers/terrorism/)

Syllabus: Defence & Strategic Studies, University of Pune. (http://www.unipune.ac.in/dept/mental_moral_and_social_science/defense_and_strategic_studies/default.htm)

“Borders open, criminals walk to Nepal” by R.N.Sinha (The Telegraph, 23-03-2010)

Pakistan’s export of Indian fake currency via Nepal (indiandefencereview.com, 19/11/2010)

5 Indians held in Nepal for trafficking, arms smuggling.( Deccan Herald, 04/10/2010.)

The easy way to arms & Violence. (tehelka.com, 26/01/2008)

Dawood’s man in Nepal. (Outlook, 15/06/1998)

“The Kathamandu Connection” by Bhavana Vij & Ritu Sarin(Indian Express, 17/02/199)

Harkat-ul-Jihad ul Islami. (http://www.satp.org/satporgtp/countries/bangladesh/terroristoutfits/Huj.htm#)

Bengal link in Masjid, Mumbai train blasts. (Times of India, 21/05/2007)

“The Terror.The Threat.The Twist.” By Rana Ayyub (30/07/2011. tehelka.com)

“Harper, Obama to push for major border deal.” (03/02/2011, http://www.ctv.ca/CTVNews/TopStories/20110203/harper-obama-border-summit-faces-sovereignty-delays-110203/)

“The integration of Canada & USA” by Dana Gabriel. (06/02/2011, http://www.globalresearch.ca/index.php?context=viewArticle&code=GAB20110206&articleId=23109)

“Latin America in global economy: Running faster to stay in place.” by Gereffi, Gary, Hempel, Lynn. (http://www.hartford-hwp.com/archives/40/097.html)

“Clinton says US feeds Mexico drug trade.” (New York Times, 25/03/2009)

“US to step up battle against drug trafficking along Mexican border.” (Washington Post, 25/03/2009)

“Canada major player in illegal drug trdae.” (24/06/2009, http://www.winnipegsun.com/news/canada/2009/06/24/9916306-sun.html)

Total/Terrorism Awareness Office: Is it truly dead? (Electronic Frontier Foundation, http://w2.eff.org/Privacy/TIA/20031003_comments.php)

“Chief takes over agency to thwart attacks on US” by Mark Off, John (The New York Times, 13/02/2002)

Official website of Information Awareness Office (http://infowar.net/tia/www.darpa.mil/iao/)

“Rs 100 crore for unique identification project.” (The Hindu, 19/02/2009)

Aaadhar takes off: PM, Sonia launch UID in tribal area (Indian Express, 29/09/2010)

Attack on American Center in Kolkata (23/01/2002, The Hindu)

“How we found pearl buried in 10 pieces” –Musharaf’s Memoirs. (26/09/2006, The Sunday Times)

“Marriott Marine mystery” (The Saudi Gazzette)

Bali Bomber’s book exposes mind of a terrorist. (http://www.jihadwatch.org/2004/09/bali-bomber-book-exposes-mind-of-terrorist.html)

Mumbai attacks American victims want Headley to depose. (23-08-11, Deccan Herald)

Chapter-2: Mumbai Attacks: 59 Hours of Death.

(This chapter is largely based on author’s own experiences while covering the Mumbai attacks.)

Interview of ex NSG chief J.K.Dutta by Harinder Baweja.(Tehelka magazine, 20/06/2009)

Attacks draw worldwide condemnation. (The Guardian, 28/11/2008)

Mumbai Attack: Timeline of how the terror unfolded: (27/11/2008, Daily Mirror, UK)

NSG ends reign of terror at Nariman. (29/11/2008, Times of India)

Karambir Kang has kept away from his family suite on Taj’s sixth floor. (http://news.rediff.com/report/2009/nov/26/anniversary-26-11-taj-gm-will-not-enter-the-suite-on-sixth-floor.htm)

Case closed, the criminal is stress. ( 17/05/2008, DNA)

26/11: Mumbai Fire Fighters: the Unsung Heroes. (18/11/2009, Indian Express)

Gunning for each other. (13/04/2003, Mid Day)

Media introspects on its voverage of 26/11 attacks. (http://news.outlookindia.com/item.aspx?651445)

Baseless rumors create panic in Mumbai. (http://www.thaindian.com/newsportal/world-news/baseless-rumours-create-panic-in-mumbai_100124753.html)

Jaago Mumbai Jaagao (26/12/2008, Mid Day)

CM under fire over Varma’s Taj visit. (01/12/2008, Times of India)

Are politicians suffering from foot in mouth syndrome? (04/12/2008, Indian Express)

2 Patil heads rolled after 26/11. (10/11/2009, Indian Express.)

Gafoor shifted, Sivanandhan new Mumbai police chief. (13/06/2009, Indian Express)

Chapter-3: Mohammed Afroz: A pilot, a terrorist & a politician.

“The curious case of Mohammed Afroz.” by Praveen Swamy. (13/04/2002, The Frontline)

Who advised to drop POTO charge against Afroz? (27/03/2002, Mid Day)

Police, not I charged Afroz under POTO-Nikam (28/03/2002, Mid Day)

Mohammed Afroz finally gets taste of freedom. (10/04/2002, Times of

India

)

Candidate with a 9/11 past. (http://www.rediff.com/election/2004/oct/08muslim.htm)

The model prisoner who thrives on yoga. (28/03/2002, Indian Express)

Give and Take(17/10/2004, Indian Express)

Mumbai Police chief going on leave raises eyebrows. (http://www.rediff.com/news/2002/apr/09afroz1.htm)

Chapter-4: Underworld & Terrorism: A Deadly Handshake.

Order of Hon.Tada court in the case of 12 March 1993 Mumbai Bomb Blast case.

Black Friday by Hussain Zaidi.(2002)

India not like US to launch Abottabad type operation-Singh. (13/05/2011, Tribune)

Old aide of Bhatkal held for 02-03 blasts. (11/05/2004)

Pune Blast: Bhatkal brothers emerge as prime suspects. (15/02/2010)

“The arrest of Aftab Ansari” by Praveen Swami. (16/03/02, Frontline)

Aftab Ansari’s death sentence stayed. (25/05/2010, Times of India)

A canary in the cage. (25/02/2002, Outlook)

Mumbai blasts: Cops to now focus on bike thieves. (29/07/2011, Times of India)

ATS arrests 2 Indian Mujahideen members. (13/07/2011, Sakaal Times)

17 blasts rock Ahmedabad (27/07/2008, Hindustan Times)

Mumbai Encounter specialist: The story so far. (13/01/2010, Rediff.com)

Key is the fear; How encounters struck fear in gangster’ hearts. (13/07/2011, DNA)

D.Sivanandhan to be new police chief of Mumbai. (14/06/2009, Mumbai Mirror)

Urban Cowboys( 06/01/2003, Time Magazine)

“Maximum City: Bombay lost & found” by Suketu Mehta(Published in 2004)

Chapter-5: Counter Terrorism & Media.

Booming: Television news channels in

India

. (http://ezinearticles.com/?Booming:-Television-News-Channels-in-India&id=83168)

Media introspects on its voverage of 26/11 attacks. (http://news.outlookindia.com/item.aspx?651445)

Baseless rumors create panic in Mumbai. (http://www.thaindian.com/newsportal/world-news/baseless-rumours-create-panic-in-mumbai_100124753.html

Interview of ex NSG chief J.K.Dutta by Harinder Baweja.(Tehelka magazine, 20/06/2009)

Journalist who spoke to 26/11 attackers depose. (05/11/2009, Rediff.com)

Managing editor of a news channel deposes in 26/11 trial.(http://www.indlaw.com/guest/DisplayNews.aspx?0441BA7E-148B-4396-A775-9B6D3706B1F3)

26/11: Photographers evidence. (12/03/2010, The Hindu)

Mumbai blasts: Some personal reflections by Parful Ketkar. (http://www.ipcs.org/article/india/mumbai-blasts-some-personal-reflections-1131.html)

NBA imposes rules for news channels on terror coverage. (18/12/2008, www.indiantelevision.com)

Mumbai court restrains media over cctv footage of blasts. (19/07/2011, The Hindu)

Hunt for IM media cell member. (23/12/2010, Indian Express)

About the author.

2011-10-16T19:09:00.000+09:00

Jitendra Dixit is an enthusiast of research & reporting on terrorism, counter terrorism strategies & international organized crime. He did his masters in International Politics from University of Mumbai. Over the years he has developed a network of law enforcers, intelligence agents, counter terror analyst & academicians across various countries of the globe. With an experience of television journalism over 12 years, Jitendra has covered 9 terrorist attacks in India & has also followed their investigations & judicial trials. Jitendra represented India in “Combat International Crime Conference 2011” organized by the US government under auspices of International Visitors Leadership Program. Presently he is working with Indian television channel Star News as a Senior Editor.

Bombay Number 3. (Memoirs of a Mumbai Boy)

2011-10-11T22:26:00.000+09:00

(This is first of the series on old Mumbai.The series focusses on various aspects of the megapolis encompassing its social life, politics, crime and transformation.)

1979. It was one of those years when the cold war was at its worst. Soviet Union had invaded Afghanistan, the aggressive stances of US President Ronald Reagan & British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher fuelled the fears of a third world war and the deadly arms race assured to destroy the globe multiple times. Newspapers were full of scary stories and the intellectual class talked about the perils of war. Whole world got divided into two power blocs. Although, India claimed to be a founding member of Non-Aligned Movement, its proximity towards Soviet Union was evident. It was in this year that I was born, unaware of what was happening in the world where I just entered. I grew up in Masjid Bunder area of Mumbai which too just like a new born was neither bothered nor aware of the World politics…because Masjid Bunder is a world in itself with its own colours, struggles and politics. The world changed after cold war, but Masjid Bunder remains more or less the same.

Masjid Bunder is an area of South Mumbai having close proximity to the ports on its eastern side. Take a walk from Mumbadevi Temple to Masjid Bunder station any part of the day and you will find it heavily crowded and filled with noises of various kinds. In fact Masjid Bunder is one of the most noise polluted area of South Mumbai. You may see a sweating hand cart puller who is putting more energy to shout for getting the way in the crowd than pulling his heavily loaded cart. They are known as “Haathgaadi walas”. The two wheel cart is like a sea-saw which is pulled and pushed by one or two men. Haathgaadiwalas are mostly from Bihar or eastern Uttar Pradesh states of India, but you may find few local Maharashtrians also. The carts they pull are peculiar only in this part of the city. They are mostly employed by small wholesale dealers of food grains, tarpaulins, industrial gadgets, clothes etc. Haathgaadi walas take utmost care that they or their carts doesn’t touch anybody in the crowd, but even a slight brush with somebody can bring trouble for them. You may see a poor haathgaadiwala being slapped by motor cycle riding youngsters for “touching” their bike or obstructing their way too long. Dozens of hand carts occupy a major part of the road which is already narrow and encroached by stall owners and hawkers on both the sides. Taxi drivers dread these haathgaadis and this is one reason why they refuse passengers for this area. Experienced taxi drivers avoid coming this way during day time. Only the ones who have newly picked up the job of taxi driving accept passengers for Masjid Bunder and they too after getting stuck for hours here twice or thrice learn the lesson-“Say no to passengers for Masjid Bunder.”

Apart from deafening shouts of haathgaadiwaalas you could hear different interesting sounds in this walk of about a kilometer. Audio cd stall owners mostly play Bhojpuri songs and that is to entice north Indian customers who alight at Masjid Bunder station in large numbers to visit Mumbadevi Temple. As you move ahead towards the station you will find numerous shops on each side of the road which are mostly run by Hindu and Muslim Gujarati businessmen. From stationery to dry fruits and clothes to perfumes everything is sold in here in wholesale and retail. Small retail shopkeepers from other parts of the city throng this area for their supplies. Heavy vehicles like trucks are another feature of this area. Food grains and other items brought from other parts of India and the world lands at the wholesalers storages and shops on trucks and tempos which park beside the roads till the goods are unloaded or loaded. This adds to traffic chaos in the area. The trader who calls the truck pays to the local traffic cops for looking the other way. Getting posted in this area turns out to be heaven for such cops. Often on Saturday traffic creates hell for Masjid Bunder as traders want to clear the deliveries pending since the week before a new week begins. Whole road is clogged with Haathgaadiwalas, trucks and tempos and it takes at least 45 minutes to cover one kilometer distance from Mumbadevi Temple to Masjid Bunder station.

Masjid Bunder derives one part of its name from more than a century old Jakaria Masjid which is situated at Yusuf Meherali Road and another from Ports. “Port” in Marathi is called as “Bunder”. Hence, the area got its name from two of its landmarks. The area has majority of Muslim population which are mostly of Gujarati origins like Memons, Bohras, Patels, Khojas etc. A part of Samuel Street which is also known Pala Galli is inhabited by Shia Muslims. The non Muslim population in the area comprises of Hindu Gujaratis, Marathis and a small number of North and South Indians. There is a small synagogue also at the southern end of Samuel Street which indicates a miniscule presence of Jewish population. Most of the families belong to lower or middle economic class. You may not see many people who could afford a simple car here and those who can afford buy a second hand one. Many well to do families prefer motor cycles instead of cars due to traffic and parking woes in the area. The bylanes of Masjid Bunder are controlled by powerful parking mafia who grab the parking space and then extort heavy amounts from traders to let them park their trucks. If some resident confront these mafias and park his own vehicle at the space grabbed by them, he is not dealt with directly. Next day the vehicle owner finds the vehicle damage. Either the air from tyre is leaked or side mirrors or parking lights are smashed. This is a kind of warning given to the resident by parking mafia which says-“Don’t mess with us. Damage could be more next time.”

People live in old buildings which are as old as 100 years old. Although, multistoried towers are being constructed now in the area, most of the buildings in Masjid Bunder are of maximum 5 or 6 floors. There are very few buildings with elevators in the locality and residents have to climb up the stairs to reach their house. Most people live in a 1 or 2 room’s house with common toilets on each floor used by all the residents of the building.

A one room house serves as an all in one arrangement with kitchen, cupboards, bed, praying area, television etc in the same room. There is a grave issue of privacy as large families manage themselves in tiny rooms. When the boy of a family gets married the parents leave for pilgrimage or head to their native place so that couple could get privacy and time to “make efforts for family expansion.” Even in the absence of parents, privacy is not assured considering the intrusions of neighbours who come to borrow sugar or salt and then there are hawkers who knock the door to sell pani puri, utensils and grocery. On each floor there are 3 to 4 rooms and they are so close to each other that aroma tells everybody who is cooking what. Unlike flat system which is mostly prevalent in suburbs, the occupants of the rooms are not their owners. The housing in this area like other areas of old Mumbai has a unique system called “Pagadi” As per this system whole building is owned by a landlord and residents buy their rooms from him. Although, the purchaser pays the amount equal to the prevalent real estate price in the area, he doesn’t get the right of owning the room which he has purchased. He lives in the rooms and pays monthly maintenance also, although a person could own a flat by spending same amount in suburban Mumbai. The landlord is called as “Ghardhani” and purchaser is called as “Bhadoot” (tenant) in local housing lingo. Although, technically the landlord is owner of the room, he/she cannot sell the room with Bhadoot’s consent. If a Bhadoot wants to sell the room, then he has to pay 1 or 2 % of the total deal in cash to the landlord so that he allows the next purchaser to occupy the room. With redevelopment of old buildings in the area “Pagadi” system is on the decline.

The social life in this part of Mumbai is quite different from what one sees in suburban Mumbai. Infact, life in old Mumbai resembles the life of Indian villages where everybody knows everybody. An occupant of a room in Masjid Bunder’s old building knows what his neighbour is doing, how many members are there in neighbour’s family, his children go to which school and his parents are suffering from which medical problems. Almost everyday there is gathering of housewives near the staircase (which is the only common area in the building after toilets) where personal information, gossips etc is shared and back biting is done on those who are not present. Youngsters unite for “Gulli Cricket” (street cricket) matches and to organize festivals like Ganesh Utsav and Dahi Handi. Quarrels are also frequent especially among the housewives and most of the time reason for quarrels are petty issues like priority in filling water from common taps, putting ones belonging close to others house or playing loud music. However, rarely such matters are reported to the police and even in cases where the police are called, both the sides get a verbal bashing and warnings that they will be put in jail. The hostility between the warring families end within days and housewives of both the families are soon seen at the gossip corner near the staircase.

Residents of Masjid Bunder like other residents of south Mumbai take pride for being a “townwalla” (belonging to downtown Mumbai.) and are subject of envy for people who live in suburban Mumbai and travel everyday like cattle in local trains or drive with snail speed on road to reach Mumbai for work. Contrary to this, if a south Mumbai resident has to travel everyday to suburbs for work, he is at an advantage because in the morning the rush is from suburbs to South Mumbai and trains heading suburbs are not crowded. Traffic also moves smoothly towards suburbs. Hence, although having a lifestyle inferior to a suburban resident, a south Mumbai resident feels himself as fortunate & superior.

The general style and mannerism of majority of young and middle aged people from this area seems to be inspired from Hindi films based on underworld. Every motor cycle riding youngster will appear to be imitating film stars like Salman Khan, Shahrukh Khan or Sanjay Dutt. The kind of clothes, caps or glares wore by these film stars take no time to influence youngsters of Masjid Bunder.

Motorbikes are a craze in this locality. As soon as a teen passes his tenth grade he urges his parents to get him a bike even if by that age he is not eligible for a driving licence. In the decade of 90s Yamaha RX 100 and Hero Honda CD 100 were the most seen bikes in the area which were replaced in 21^st century by new age bikes like Honda Unicorn and Bajaj Pulsar. A ride to Nariman Point for a Chinese soup or a plate of Pav Bhaji every night is relished by the youth. The guys also visit this place for “bird watching” which means having an eyeful of beautiful girls and women who come to Queen’s Necklace for an evening stroll or jogging. These are mostly guests of Trident-Oberoi Hotels or residents of Marine Drive. Few youngsters who get over excited after seeing some “Hot Item” (this is how a sexually attractive girl is referred) start doing “wheelies” on their motor cycles to grab the girl’s attention. “Wheely” means a stunt where the motorcycle’s frontal wheel is lifted vertically. Many have broken their bones or have got thrashing by cops while doing such stunts.

The craze of bikes made an illiterate mechanic Mohsin Rizvi a celebrity in the city. Rizvi migrated to Mumbai in early eighties from Barabanki district of Uttar Pradesh and started a garage near J.J.Hospital. Very soon he realized that young boys in the area are willing to spend any amount of money for bikes which looks attractive and different from others. Hence, he started modifying bikes and started experimenting with popular bikes in the market. Mohsin Rizvi who publicized himself as MR introduced several features in motorcycles which were later imitated by bike manufacturing companies. He not only twisted the body of motorcycles, but also made alterations in engines for better pick up and performance. Rizvi installed mechanism in bike which prevented stealing of fuels. His remote control starting bike and chutki start bike became very popular in the area. An educated and computer savvy motorcycle freak Umar became his friend in early 90s and started a website for him. This made MR popular throughout the country and he was also noticed by motorcycle manufacturers who used to send their representatives at his workshop to check what his latest innovation was.

Mohsin Rizvi earned an image of honest and sincere mechanic. He never used substandard parts and delivered a complaint free vehicle to his customers on time. He chose his customers and provided services only to those who were ready to abide by his conditions. One of his conditions was that he will replace any part of the motorcycle without asking the customer which he feels needed to be replaced. MR’s service charges were 10 times higher than other mechanics in the area and were non negotiable. Rizvi used to rudely throw out customers who tried to bargain with him on the cost. Still, he had a line of customer’s everyday at his garage. Very soon he attracted the attention of press also and every other day some media person visited his garage for interviews.

Rizvi was a very strict boss and a ruthless teacher. He was a terror for the boys working under him. If he noticed any laxity in their work a tight slap or a hit by hammer on leg joints was imminent. Many boys who learnt from him have become established automobile mechanics today and follow his values of professionalism and honesty.

I was a friend of Mohsin Rizvi and got my own Hero Honda Splendor modified from him. Mohsin Rizvi’s story didn’t continue for more than 10 years. I have been a witness of his glorious rise and sudden fall. Most of his acquaintances claim that Rizvi was not able to digest his quick earned success. He became very arrogant and also started behaving rudely with his well wishers. Very soon Umar left him and this marked the beginning of his decline. Few issues with the landlord on whose place Rizvi was running his garage cropped up and he had to shift from the main road to an interior street of Imamwada area. The change of location also affected his customer base. Rizvi was not getting oriented with his new workshop. Meanwhile, he developed a sudden interest in religion and spirituality and started devoting more time on religious activities. The brain which was earlier engrossed in innovations and experimentations had changed. Meanwhile, other mechanics also started their garages in the locality and poached Rizvi’s customers by imitating his style of service, with only difference being that they were polite and respectful to their customers. Very soon Rizvi realized that he was unable to bear the expenditure for his new workshop and hence he shut it down by 2007. The new motorcycle riders of the area don’t know anything about him.

The area is also characterized by gross disrespect to traffic rules and lack of road manners. In reality Motor Vehicle Act is neither followed nor enforced between 3 kilometers stretch under J.J.Flyover from Crawford Market till J.J.Hospital junction. You will see traffic policemen on duty, but they are just there to be seen and not to be feared by rash drivers and riders. Stand at J.J.Hospital junction any time of the day and you may find a helmetless biker with two pillion riders (triple seats) jumping a signal while talking on his cell phone unmindful of the traffic cop’s presence. You will be shocked to see that the cop makes no attempt to stop and penalize the rider. In other areas if such a motorcycle rider would have been caught, he would have been charged for four offences- a) Triple seat riding, b) Signal Jumping, c) Riding without helmet and d) Talking on a cell phone while riding an automobile. Nobody stops at red signal in this stretch and nobody is worried of penalty for violating traffic norms.

Is there any special order from the government for not taking any action against traffic offenders in this area? I asked Deepak Lad a traffic constable from Colaba who became my friend during my days as a junior crime reporter.

“Oh God…all traffic policemen dread to be posted in that area. It’s a headache to be there. First of all if you try to stop a traffic offender, he will not listen to you and speed away and even if you manage to catch someone he will abuse you and start shouting. The offender will not only abuse the police department but also the government saying that it is harassing poor people. Very soon the policeman is surrounded by a crowd of passersby and then the offender will make a false allegation that he was asked to pay a bribe. The crowd becomes sympathetic towards the offender and sees policeman as the culprit. They join the offender in abusing the policeman and the government. The cop is threatened and psychologically pressurized to leave the offender. Ultimately after observing the growing anger of the crowd the cop feels it prudent to leave him rather than getting beaten up by the crowd. A newly posted traffic cop in this locality never intercepts a traffic offender after having such experience once or twice. This is the reason why we don’t do anything in this area.”

“But you can always take down offender’s vehicle registration number, track down his residence and take action against him. Cant you?”

“Yes…that system is there…but that is like another punishment to us rather than for the offender. Once you take down the registration number, you have to go to the Regional Transport Office (RTO) to find the offenders address etc. After that a notice is issued to him and tedious legal proceedings begin. It is like an extra burden for a policeman who stands for 8 hours on the road, facing harsh sun, bad weather and noise and air pollution.”

Lad also informed that traffic policemen were teased and insulted here by being called as “Mamu”. Although, in Urdu language “Mamu” means maternal uncle, in Masjid Bunder and adjoining areas it means a foolish policeman. There are few notorious youngsters who speed away on their motor cycles after lifting away policeman’s cap even if he hasn’t intercepted them. Fearlessly they make fun of the poor traffic cop who desperately chases them to get his cap back. Cops feel insulted with this kind of proactive harassment and hence maintain a low profile.

Considering the temperament and general style of behaviour of the residents of Masjid Bunder, one high profile mobile phone company came up with a smart idea to handle customers in this locality. They opened an outlet at Mohammed Ali Road and employed only local boys and girls to deal with the customers. This led to a very different kind of experience for customers who have visited outlets of this company in other areas. The welcoming and smiling faces of staffers were replaced with expressions like “Why the hell have you come here?” and “Get your job done fast and get lost.” There was no sophistication in the behaviour and the employees seemed- “Not happy to help”. The local youth dealt arrogantly with customers who raised their voice and often spoke in intimidating tone. They were trained for a “Tit for tat behaviour.”

I was born in Laxmibai Maternity home of Vadgadi Street in Masjid Bunder area. The maternity home got shutdown few years after my birth and then the premises was leased to a commercial establishment. After getting discharged from the maternity home, I was brought to my “Nana’s (maternal grandfather’s) home. My father who ran a small shop of imported and cutlery items in Zaveri Bazar was staying with him that time. As I grew up to the age of schooling, my parents started looking for a good English medium school in the locality. My parents who were educated in a Hindi medium school of rural Uttar Pradesh considered it to be a handicap for not being fluent in English in a city like Mumbai. They didn’t want me to grow up with such handicap. They got me admitted in junior K.G. class of St.Ignatius School of Koliwada area when I was about 2 years old.

I have very blurred memory of the classes which I attended there. I remember a middle aged Christian lady who used to teach us ABC for sometime and then took us at the school terrace for games. I don’t remember what exactly happened that I had to leave this school, but my mother tells me that I fought with a classmate. He had thrown away my tiffin box from the fourth floor of the school building and to take revenge I bit him so forcefully that he fell ill. When the teacher got to know about this, she thrashed me black and blue with a foot ruler. I got so scared next day that I refused to go to the school. I informed about the fight with that classmate and subsequent thrashing to my mother and Nani (maternal grandmother). They got enraged after listening to my story and straightaway headed to Principals office asking him to take action against the teacher in a very high temper. The Principal defended his teacher and told that I was a danger for other students of the class. This further angered my mother and Nani and they immediately decided to withdraw my name from St.Ignatius School.

After leaving St.Ignatius, my parents had to search for another school. In any case they had to do that later on as St.Ignatius was till just Class 4. They decided to admit me in Khoja Khanmohammed Habibbhai High School, shortly known as Khoja Khan School. The school is located in Samuel Street, just 2 lanes away from where I stayed at Masjid Bunder. It is run by a trust of Khoja Muslims. Khoja Khan is an all boys English medium school and has classes uptil 10^th standard. Although, the medium of instruction is English here, teachers explain everything in Hindi and communicate with students in Hindi unlike convent schools.

Most of the students of Khoja Khan were from Muslims families. I was one of the 3-4 non Muslims students of the class and when I reached class 10, I was the only Hindu student in my class. It was few years after leaving the school that I realized that grandsons, great grandsons, nephews and cousins of the deadly Pathan gang which were one of the key players of Mumbai underworld had been my classmates. During my school days these class mates flaunted their relationship with the Pathan gang, but I never recognized the importance of that gang in Mumbai underworld nor was I interested to know about criminal gangs. There were children of other local gang members also studying in that school. Most of the gangsters wanted their children to be educated in English and have a decent career. Khoja Khan School came handy for them where fees were not very high, parents were not interviewed and it was located near to their residences. However, there were few cases where teachers came under attack by gangsters when their sons complained of “harassment” by them. One of the cases I remember is of “Popat Sir”. Popat’s original name was Robert Perira. He was our physical training teacher and was called “Popat” because of his parrot like nose and Hitler style moustaches. He was infamous for becoming over friendly with students and talking to them with words which abused mothers and sisters. Once he jokingly abused son of a local gangster. The offended student reported the case by adding his own spice to his father. Next day the gangster entered the school with a naked sword in his hand along with two of his associates thundering abuses. Popat, who was taking a P.T class on the terrace, got an idea that he was the target of gangster’s wrath and rushed towards the toilet to hide, but was caught. The gangster pulled him back again to the terrace and rained dozens of kicks and punches on him in front of the class. Popat touched his head on gangster’s feet and begged for forgiveness. The gangster pulled him with his hairs , pointed his sword towards Popat’s neck and thundered-

“You are a teacher of my son and that is why I am leaving you alive…but you don’t behave like a teacher. You should be ashamed of yourself. Next time if you repeat what you did yesterday, this sword will cut your body into so many pieces that people will not be able to count. Leave this school if you want to be alive.”

After giving an earful to Popat, the gangster left. The whole incident happened in front of 40 students of 7^th standard. There were around 6 teachers and 3 peons also present, but nobody came to Popat’s rescue. The matter was not reported to the police and after few months Popat resigned from the school.

When I was in 3^rd standard Principal S.A.H Abedi died due to a heart attack in his office and Zamirul Hassan Khan known as “Khan Sir” took over as the Principal.

Khan Sir, a short heighted man with a French beard was a local resident. He was a sincere teacher and a good administrator. He reached office before time and was last to leave from the school. He identified others schools in the locality like Dawoodbhai Fazalbhai High School, Habib High School, St.Joseph’s High School etc as rivals and wanted that the number of students passing SSC exams should be more than these schools. Although, never a student of Khoja Khan made it to merit list or scored over 90% of marks, Khan Sir got satisfied that his school got 100% passing result in SSC (meaning none of the students failed) Khan Sir went out of the way to deliver 100% passing result. He started taking extra classes of students in 9^th standard and taught them syllabus of standard 10^th. He identified weak students and focused more on them and even if they didn’t show improvement, he threatened them to repeat in 9^th standard next year also. For 10^th standard students there were no weekly holidays, no Diwali vacations & no summer vacations. Khan Sir himself used to take extra classes on these days so that students are better prepared to face SSC exams. Being very strict in his approach, Khan Sir was not very popular among students & one can see numerous abuses and cartoons of him on the walls of school toilet.

Although, Khan Sir was not very popular among the students he was seen with great respect among the educationists of “Bombay Number 3.” Masjid Bunder has postal code 400003 and that is why it is known as Bombay number 3, but over the years “Bombay Number 3” has become much more than a postal code. It has become an identity for those adjoining areas also which have different postal codes like Dongri, Bhendi Bazar, Pydhonie & Null Bazar. “Bombay Number 3” has become a description of a geographical area which has a unique character and represents an aggressive, flamboyant, vibrant, polluted, multicultural, multilingual and multireligious lifestyle. “Bombay Number 3” in its exhaustive sense has been not only crime prone but has been also a breeding ground for criminals who have ruled the Mumbai underworld. Pakmodia Street where underworld Don Dawood Ibrahim’s ancestral house is located is just about 3 kilometers from Masjid Bunder. His sister Haseena Parker stays nearby at Nagpada. Around 4 kilometers away from Masjid Bunder is Grant Road where the founder of Pathan gang Karim Lala lived. Another gangster of his time Haji Mastan who later became politician opened his office opposite J.J.Hospital. During the last 4 decades these areas have witnessed tremendous amount of bloodshed caused by gangwars, communal riots and extortion rackets. This is why there is a certain degree of fear associated with Bombay Number 3. Whenever there is a dispute between cricket teams of lads, a particular team gets defensive if the opponent is from Bombay Number 3. Nobody in Mumbai wants to have confrontation with people from Bombay number 3. Old Mumbaikars from other parts of the city often refer to residents of this locality as “Bombay number 3 ka shaana.” (Smarty from Bombay number 3)

Address to the Nation.: The World during Cold War & now. (from Indian pers...

2011-10-10T20:19:00.000+09:00

Address to the Nation.: The World during Cold War & now. (from Indian pers...: I was born in 1979 at a time when the cold war was at its worst. The world was divided into 2 power blocs and it seemed that a third world...

The World during Cold War & now. (from Indian perspective)

2011-10-10T20:17:00.000+09:00

I was born in 1979 at a time when the cold war was at its worst. The world was divided into 2 power blocs and it seemed that a third world war is imminent. It was during this time that Soviet Union invaded Afghanistan and US President Ronald Reagan & British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher took an aggressive stance against Soviet Union’s agenda of expansion. The deadly arms race assured the destruction of the globe multiple times. After observing the current happenings around the world I have tried to contemplate how much has the world changed after the cold war. My broad observations are as follows:

During Cold War.	Now. (Post cold war)
Osama bin Laden was a friend of USA who helped USA in fighting proxy war against Soviets in Afghanistan.	Osama bin Laden turned out to be biggest enemy of USA after 9/11 and was killed by US forces in Pakistan.
Pakistan was friend of USA.	USA is accusing Pakistan of backstabbing and supporting terror groups against USA. Very soon the relationship between the two is likely to loose the label of “friendship”
USA threatened India on behalf of Pakistan and even moved its seventh fleet to scare India in 1971 war.	USA is advising Pakistan to make peace with India and Pakistan should not treat India as its mortal enemy.
Pakistan was seen as close to USA and India was seen as close to Soviet Union (Although, being part of Non Aligned Movement)	USA-Pakistan bilateral relations are diminishing and USA-India relations are getting stronger.
USA was the greatest well wisher of Pakistan.	China is becoming the greatest well wisher of Pakistan.
Japanese electronic goods dominated the world market. They were seen as cheap and unreliable.	Chinese electronic and other consumer goods dominate the world market. Now they are seen as cheap and unreliable.
USA was the biggest economic power.	Countries like China are challenging USA’s dominance in the economic sphere and are potent to defeat USA in near future.
Spread of Communism was the biggest worry for USA.	Spread of terrorism is the biggest worry for USA.
USA was keeping a close eye on every move of Soviet Union & vice versa.	USA is keeping a close watch on every move of China & vice versa.

जेल गैंगवार: डॉन अबू सलेम और मुस्तफा डोसा में सुलह

2011-09-14T21:15:00.001+09:00

जिस शख्स ने अंडरवर्ल्ड डॉन अबू सलेम की ये हालत मुंबई के आर्थर रोड जेल में हुए गैंग वार के दौरान की थी उससे अब सलेम ने हाथ मिला लिया है ।वो शख्स था डॉन दाऊद इब्राहिम का गुर्गा मुस्तफा डोसा ।डोसा पर आरोप है कि उसने एक चम्मच में धार करके सलेम के चेहरे और गले पर हमला किया और उसकी जान लेने की कोशिश की ।उस गैंग वार के साल भर बाद टाडा अदालत में सलेम और डोसा ने एक दूसरे से हाथ मिला कर सबकों चौंका दिया ।

अबू सलेम और मुस्तफा डोसा दोनो की बुधवार को मुंबई की इसी टाडा अदालत में एक साथ पेशी थी ।अपने वकीलों और जज के सामने दोनो एक साथ कटघरे में आए ,एक दूसरे के गले मिले औऱ हाथ मिलाकर फिर से कभी न लड़ने का वादा किया।

अबू सलेम और मुस्तफआ डोसा दोनो 12 मार्च1993 के मुंबई बम धमाके के मामले में टाडा कानून के तहत आरोपी हैं ।1997 तक अबू सलेम दाऊद के लिए काम करता था लेकिन उसके बाद सलेम ने दाऊद गिरोह छोड़कर अपना अलग गिरोह बना लिया ।उसी वक्त से दाऊद और सलेम के गिरोहों के बीच दुश्मनी चल रही थी जो जेल में भी जारी रही ।दाऊद के गुर्गे मुस्तफा डोसा को शक था कि सलेम उसकी हरकतों की जानकारी जेल प्रशासन को दे देता है।इसी बात से खफा होकर उसने 24 जुलाई 2010 को सलेम पर हमला कर दिया ।

कहते है कि राजनीति में हमेशा के लिए कोई किसी का दोस्त या दुश्मन नहीं होता ।दोस्ती और दुश्मनी जैसे रिश्ते जरुरतों के मुताबिक बनते और बिगड़ते रहते हैं ।यही बात अंडरवर्ल्ड पर भी लागू होती है ।आर्थर रोड जेल में हुए गैंग वार के बाद अबू सलेम और मुस्तफा डोसा दोनो को मुंबई के बाहर अलग-अलग जेलों में भेज दिया गया था ।ये बात दोनो को नागवार गुजरी और इसीलिए दोनो ने एक बार फिर हाथ मिला लिया है ।

अबू सलेम नवी मुंबई की तलोजा जेल में है और मुस्तफा डोसा थाणे जेल में है ।दोनो के लिए मुंबई से बाहर रहना काफी तकलीफदेह साबित हो रहा है।रिश्तेदारों और वकीलों से मुलाकात करने में दिक्कतें तो आ ही रही हैं लेकिन इसके साथ साथ दोनो को आर्थर रोड जेल में अपने बने बनाए नेटवर्क की कमी भी खल रही है ।इसीलिए दोनों को आपस में सुलह कर लेने में ही समझदारी नजर आयी ।अब दोनो अदालत से फरियाद करेंगे कि चूंकि उनकी दुश्मनी खत्म हो चुकी है इसलिए फिर से उन्हे मुंबई की आर्थर रोड जेल में भेज दिया जाए।

Interview with US Asst.Secretary of States Mr.Robert Blake.

2011-07-27T19:01:00.002+09:00

(Recently, I chanced upon to meet Mr.Robert (Bob).O.Blake, Assistant Secretary for Department of States & in-charge of south & central Asian affairs.He was in India along with Secretary Hillary Clinton for diplomatic talks with her Indian counterpart S.M.Krishna. Mr.Blake has also served as a diplomat in India & Sri Lanka.Few years back he survived an attack by LTTE in Sri Lanka. Here are excerpts from the on camera interview with Secretary Blake.)

1) Mr.Secretary,

Pakistan

has been harbouring some of the most wanted terrorists of India & United States on its soil. In the case of United States you have carried out an operation & killed your deadliest enemy Osama bin Laden, but for India some of its most wanted terrorist like Dawood Ibrahim, Maulana Masood Azhar, Zakir ur Rehman & others have still got safe haven in Pakistan. You say that India is your partner in the war against terror, then will US do something concrete so that these terrorists are handed over to India?

Answer: Secretary was very clear in her venture in New Delhi that Pakistan has an obligation to prevent terrorism on its soil to prevent attacks on friendly countries like India and U.S, but she is also very clear that we need to work closely with Pakistan. We need to engage Pakistan because it’s a country that faces many challenges now, economic challenges, energy challenges, security challenges and so we have an important effort under way to help them meet those many challenges simply through increased civilian assistance through the Carrey Berman Legislation…so we are pursuing these tracks.

2) Mr Blake, what do you feel India’s stand should be after getting evidences of numerous terrorist attacks which were planned on Pakistani soil & executed in India? How do you think India should react every time?

Answer: Well again I think India has responded very appropriately by taking a very firm line on the need of greater progress by Pakistan not only on the trial of those who are responsible for terror attacks but also to dismantle some of the camps that exist and more broadly just to stop terrorism that eliminates from its soil. At the same time India as I said has undertaken this very important engagement process. I understand that the two foreign ministers will be meeting later this mont. This is a progress that we need and the pace, scope and character of that dialogue of course is up to India & Pakistan friends… but it’s something to applaud.

3) Mr.Secretary, what is your take on the reports that post Abottabad operation by Navy Seals, US-Pakistan relations have destabilized & distrust is seen taking place?

Answer: Well again the secretary has always been very clear that our relations with Pakistan are complicated. There has been some progress since the Abbottabad raid but truly much more is needed and our leaders have been very clear about that and are again working very closely with Pakistan to try and achieve that progress.

4)Today itself a news report has come that Gulam Nabi Fai a person who was working for I.S.I has been arrested by F.B.I in United States. He was campaigning against India and also networking with politician in U.S. So, in such a case where you find a person who is conspiring against a friendly country on your soil what kind of action or what kind of a response will be of U.S ?

Answer: In United States it’s illegal for foreign individual to provide funds to people who are running for federal office of some sort for example Congress. It’s also illegal for people to be acting on behalf of a foreign government without registering under our appropriate laws. So in the case of the individual Gulab Nabi Fai, he had neither disclosed his association with Pakistan nor had been cleared that he himself was representing a foreign government in making campaign contribution. So he was arrested and will be prosecuted.

5 legal loopholes in J.Dey murder case.

2011-06-28T17:44:00.002+09:00

After assessing the information provided by Mumbai Police in J Dey’s case, I find that it is legally very weak. Police will face a tough time in the court. Following are the points which could jeopardize prosecution’s case during the trial.

1) No Motive : Police has not come on record with a concrete motive on why Chota Rajan killed J Dey? It has to substantiate before the court that Rajan became an enemy of Dey & got him killed. So far there is no motive. Nothing could be fetched from the interrogation of Satish Kaliya as Rajan never revealed the identity of the target, nor he told Kaliya why he wanted to kill J Dey. It was a simple contract killing. Rajan asked Kaliya to kill a man for money, which he did.

2) Link between Chota Rajan & Satish Kaliya: Police have nothing except Satish Kaliya’s extra judicial confession that he got a call from Chota Rajan to do the job. The question is how the police are going to prove in the court that the call Kaliya received was from Chota Rajan. There is no recording of such conversation. Moreover, Rajan calls from virtual numbers using internet phones, which make it almost impossible to trace the caller.

3) No eye witnesses: There are not reliable eye witnesses who saw Kaliya shooting at J Dey. Police have got couple of so called “eye witnesses”, but it is questionable that they will survive the cross examination by defence lawyers in the court provided that it was raining at the time of shootout & most of the accused had covered their body & face with wind cheaters. Visibility was very bad. Even the sketch which police had released relying on these “eye witnesses” doesn’t match with the face of Satish Kaliya. CCTV footage has been of not much help & it could not be strong evidence in the court.

4) Who paid the money? Satish Kaliya took Rs 5 lacs in 2 installments to execute the shootout. Firstly he got money from an unidentified man in Chembur & second time in Nalasopara. However, police have not been able to track the persons who paid this amount to Satish. If these persons are not arrested police will not be able to substantiate that Chota Rajan paid the money for the killing.

5) No previous complaint from J Dey: Dey never made a formal complaint to the cops regarding any kind of threat to him. He never asked for security, nor applied for a weapons licence. None of his family members, friends, office colleagues & police officers he knew stated the police that J Dey had fear of an attack from Chota Rajan or any other gang. This fact could go against the prosecution in the court.

छोटा राजन और जे.डे का रिश्ता: देशप्रेम, दोस्ती और दुश्मनी

2011-06-28T00:30:00.000+09:00

मुंबई के जिन पत्रकारों से अंडरवर्लड डॉन छोटा राजन अक्सर संपर्क में रहता था उनमें से एक थे मिड डे अखबार के जे.डे। जहां तक मेरी जानकारी है डे और छोटा राजन करीब पिछले 12 सालों से एक दूसरे से बातचीत करते थे। अक्सर जब डे अपने साथियों के साथ रहते और छोटा राजन का फोन आता तो वे अपने साथियों से भी उसकी बात करा देते। साथी खुश हो जाते कि डे ने इतने बडे डॉन से बात करवा दी। राजन भी डे के साथियों को कहता- “कुछ काम हो तो बोलना।“ डे और छोटा राजन के बीच बड़ा ही दोस्ताना रिश्ता था और अगर ये रिश्ता पत्रकार और अपराधी के बीच जानकारी हासिल करने के लिये जो रिश्ता होता है उसकी सीमा लांघ चुका हो तो मुझे कोई आश्चर्य नहीं होगा। जे.डे. छोटा राजन से प्रभावित थे। वे इस बात को मानते थे कि राजन वाकई में देशभक्त डॉन है। छोटा राजन ने 1994 में दाऊद गिरोह से अलग होते वक्त कहा था कि 1993 में मुंबई बम धमाके करने वाला दाऊद इब्राहिम देशद्रोही है और इसलिये वो उसके गिरोह को छोड रहा है। राजन ने ऐलान किया कि वो देशभक्त है और दाऊद गिरोह का खात्मा ही उसकी जिंदगी का मिशन बन चुका है। अपने आप को देशभक्त दिखाने के लिये राजन जब भी किसी को फोन करता तो उसका अभिवादन होता- “जयहिंद”।

एक बार फोन पर बात करते हुए मेरी और जे.डे की बहस हो गई। मैने जे.डे से कहा कि दाऊद इब्राहिम तो देश का गद्दार है ही लेकिन छोटा राजन भी ढोंगी है। देशप्रेम का ढोंग करके वो अपने ही देश के लोगों से वसूली करता है, तरह तरह के अपराध करता है और अपना गिरोह चलाता है। देशप्रेमी होने का तो सिर्फ उसने मुखौटा पहन रखा है। जे.डे को ये बात बुरी लगी। डे ने छोटा राजन का बचाव किया और कहा –“भले ही राजन बहुत बडा अपराधी हो लेकिन वाकई में वो देश से प्यार करता है। उसके कई शूटरों से मैं बात कर चुका हूं। देश भकित उनकी रग रग में भरी है। वो लोग लगातार दाऊद तक पहुंचने की कोशिश कर रहे हैं और उन्हें यकीन है कि वो दाऊद का काम तमाम करके ही रहेंगे। राजन ने एक बार मुझे कहा था कि दुबई में मेरी भी इज्जत थी। बंगला था,शॉफर के साथ आलीशान कार थी..लेकिन मैने 1993 के बाद वो सब अपने देश के लिये छोड दिया। चाहता तो मैं भी ऐश से रहता”। जे.डे से उनकी हत्या के पहले मेरी जो आखिरी बातचीत हुई थी उसमें भी उन्होने राजन का जिक्र किया था। डे ने मुझे बताया कि पाकमोडिया स्ट्रीट में हुए शूटआउट के बाद छोटा राजन का उन्हें फोन आया। डे ने बताया कि इस शूटआउट से राजन काफी खुश था। डे के मुताबिक उनसे बातचीत में राजन ने एक फिल्मी स्टाईल का डायलॉग भी मारा- “बॉस अब तो दुख में ही सुख मना रहा हूं”।

आज जब मुंबई पुलिस ये कह रही है कि जे.डे को छोटा राजन ने मरवाया तो ये बात मेरे लिये बहुत ही चौंकाने वाली है। क्या ये वही छोटा राजन है जिसकी जे.डे तारीफ किया करते थे, क्या ये वही राजन है जो आये दिन किसी दोस्त की तरह जे.डे से घंटो फोन करके बतियाता था, क्या ये वही राजन है जो जे.डे की नजरों में एक देशभक्त डॉन था? अगर ये वही डॉन है तो फिर सवाल उठता है कि अचानक ऐसा क्या हो गया जो डे का जिंदा रहना राजन को भारी लगने लगा? डे का जीना राजन के लिये क्यों खतरा बन गया? डे ने राजन का क्या बिगाडा था या बिगाडने वाला था जो उसकी हत्या करवानी पडी? उम्मीद है सच देर सबेर जरूर बाहर आयेगा... हो सकता है वो कडवा भी हो...

God & Pursuit of Positivity. (इस हफ्ते की जिंदगी)

2011-06-26T19:03:00.001+09:00

Last Saturday I went to trek at Anjaneri, a place near Tryambakeshwar, Nasik. The place is popular among locals as the birth place of Lord Hanuman (although, there are other 2 places also in India, where people claim the same.) There is a magnificent Hanuman idol just adjoining Nasik-Trayambak road. From this idol people have to trek through the forest & reach the apex of Anjangad mountain where a small temple of Anjanimata is located. Since last 2 years I have been visiting this place again & again for 2 reasons. Firstly, the place is a good weekend getaway destination from Mumbai & you get an opportunity to enjoy & appreciate the natural splendor of the area. The 7 kilometers long trekking on Anjangad mountain & back also makes your adrenaline pump. My second interest to visit this place is religious one & this write up focuses on my notion of religion.

In today’s world it is not the religion you are born in or it is not also about following your parents on which God to worship, but it is your individual choice which makes you to worship a particular God or remain an atheist. For me religion is pursuit of positivity. In my belief, God in whichever form or faith you believe is personification of positivity. I choose to personify my God as Hanuman. As enunciated few months back in this blog, the image of Hanuman signifies positivity, mental & physical courage, intellect, the ability to take risks & good communication skills. I believe that these are the qualities which all journalists require. By way of worshipping Hanuman, thinking about him, we pursue positivity. I don’t expect miracles by pursuing my God, but I do expect to gain inner strength & optimism for the success of my endeavors. I may fail sometimes, but that doesn’t weakens my faith in God, because once you submit yourself to him, you have to accept that whatever happens is only for your very best. The things which on the face might seem to be gone wrong may turn out to be a blessing in the long run.

Religion is one of the most amazing concepts since the advent of human civilization. It is a great & useful concept, except when it is used to make people fight, segregate, discriminate & to make commercial gains. Religion’s beauty lies in keeping it simple & free from rituals & superstitions.

Encounter Specialists: Double edged swords to combat underworld.

2011-06-18T16:05:00.002+09:00

("इस हफ्ते की जिंदगी" का साप्ताहिक लेख इस बार अंग्रेजी में)

Those who have seen the decade of 90s in Mumbai might be experiencing a déjà vu. That was the time when shootouts were rampant, gangster called to extort money & killed those who didn’t pay up. It seemed that mafia was ruling the city & law & order machinery went haywire. What is the scenario today? It seems to be returning back to those old dreaded days. 4 people are kidnapped & killed within hours, a senior journalist is shot dead in broad daylight, gangsters have again started calling up for extortion & fire on people who don’t respond & the figures of kidnappings are rising. The situation calls for a tough retort from the law enforcement authorities before the situation escalates.

Before discussing the ways to deal with the current alarming situation, we should briefly have a glimpse on the strategy which was adopted in 90s to silent the mafias. To control the underworld, government came up with a stringent law Maharashtra Control of Organised Crime Act (MCOCA). Under this law it is not easy to acquire bail for an accused & he or she has to languish behind the bars for a longer period of time. MCOCA also armed the cops with extra ordinary powers. More than 3000 accused were booked under this law in a single decade. However, this law alone didn’t seem enough to terrify & deter the mobsters from the daily bloodbath. Hence, the police then decided to go the extra judicial way. Based on the thought- “Poison neutralizes the effect of poison.” Mumbai Police came up with the unofficial policy of “encounters.” Hundreds of suspected gang members were picked up & killed. Every time such a killing of suspect took place, the cops claimed that they were attacked first & the suspect died when cops fired in retaliation. Almost in every “encounter” this story was used to justify the killings.

During the tenure of D.Sivanandhan (the then Chief of Crime branch of Mumbai Police) alone 238 suspected gangsters from various gangs were eliminated. Later on the cops reduced the intensity of its operation & came up with “one shootout, one encounter policy.” This policy meant that whenever a gang killed some citizen, the cops will pick up & kill any member from that gang which was suspected behind the shootout. Human rights activist might not concur with me, but the bitter reality is that this unofficial policy of “encounters” worked for the cops & was successful in controlling the terror of underworld to a great extent. At least in the first decade of 21^st century the activities of underworld gangs were relatively very low.

Now, let us look at the dark side of this policy. The policy of “encounters” led to the rise of a special breed of police officers known as “encounter specialist.” These were the officers with strong network of informants in the underworld & had the tacit authority to conduct extra judicial killings of the suspected gangsters. They enjoyed extra ordinary powers & shared good rapport with senior officials. Infact, most of the superior officials relied on them to update themselves on the latest situation in the underworld. By killing suspected gangsters they became public heroes & received wide media attention including the international media. Every encounter specialist officer proudly boasted the number of gangsters he had killed. However, their days of glory lasted only for few years. It is alleged that most of such officers took undue advantage of their position in the police force & rapport with their bosses. They became corrupt, got affiliated with one gang or the other, started killing people for money, extorted money from builders & businessmen etc. This led to tremendous negative publicity & judicial intervention. Public heroes were now seen as villains. Almost all the encounter specialists were arrested & send behind the bars on charges of corruption, murder, extortion, custodial deaths & so on. Today there are no encounter specialist officers. Such officers were over confident that their superiors would come to their rescue & they could get away, but now they claim that they were “used & thrown.”

As Mumbai once again heads back to those horrifying days, the question is what policy our law enforcing agencies will adopt to nail the underworld? As enunciated earlier the policy of encounters has yielded results, but then it is a double edged sword. Secondly, even if the government unofficially allows such extra judicial policy, the question is which officer will approve to become an encounter specialist considering the fate of earlier encounter specialist cops. After senior journalist J Dey’s assassination one police officer friend told me that once again there is a need for encounter specialist officers. When I asked him whether he would volunteer to become one, he said- “No way. I have wife & children at home. My parents are old & sick. I have to earn daily bread for them & I don’t want to go to the jail.”

J Dey Assasination Case: CBI enquiry is not a prudent option.

2011-06-17T17:06:00.003+09:00

The federation of journalists in Mumbai has urged a probe by Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) in veteran journalist J.Dey’s murder case.

Intending no offence to the sentiments & emotions of fellow journalists I wish to highlight that an enquiry by CBI in this case will not be prudent.

The demand for a CBI enquiry in Dey’s murder case seems to be a knee jerk decision & influenced by emotions. While, it is true that the incident was shocking to the whole journalist fraternity across the nation & led to an emotional response, I feel that the further strategy to nab the culprits & to secure a safe environment for journalists in Mumbai, emotions must not be allowed to dominate.

Being a crime reporter for over 13 years I have closely observed the functioning of various investigating agencies like Mumbai Police, Narcotics Control Bureau, Central Investigation Bureau, Enforcement Directorate & so on. My experience says that investigation of J.Dey’s murder by CBI will fetch no good & this is likely to become just another instance of red taped case. We should not demand CBI enquiry for the following reasons:

1) CBI no longer holds its image of premier investigating agency of India having goofed up in so many high profile cases like Arushi murder case, Purulia arms drop case, Telgi case & so on. What merit CBI attracts to investigate J.Dey’s murder?

2) CBI doesn’t have the required expertise to investigate cases of Mumbai underworld. Most of the investigators from CBI are inducted on deputation from various other agencies like Central Excise etc who don’t have any experience, network of sources & informants in the underworld. In the absence of these skills how can we expect them to reveal the truth & that also swiftly?

3) Thirdly, CBI has already bitten more than it can chew. The investigating agency is heavily understaffed. As per a report the number of staffers in CBI are 25 % less than the required. In such a sordid scenario I don’t think it will be wise to handover the investigation to CBI. The case will just prolong with no credible results. Maharashtra is number 2 in the list of largest number of pending cases with CBI & Delhi holds the position of number 1.

4) Mostly, the cases which have been referred to CBI are those in which some amount of investigation has been already done, chargesheets have been filed, few accused have been arrested etc. Such cases are referred to CBI only if the state police’ investigation is doubtful or not satisfactory.

Some of my friends may contest my views by asking that how can we rely on Mumbai Police when some of its officers are seen to be hand in glove with the underworld. The recent examples also enunciate that few corrupt police officials are targeting journalists by various means. Apart from the nexus with the underworld, there also seems to be an infight among the Mumbai cops & lack of co-ordination between various units is adding salt to the wounds. Yes, I observe & agree that the scenario is disgusting, but then also CBI doesn’t seem to be a better alternative. Then what is the better alternative? How could we find out, who killed our friend J.Dey? Who will nab the killers? My response to these questions is that we should wait & watch for sometime. If we are over pressurizing the police then they may come up with some cooked up story & show those people as accused who didn’t play any role in J.Dey’s assasination. (Remember they have done that earlier also…the serial train blast case of 2006) If cops are unable to crack the case in a reasonable time then we should approach the judiciary with a plea to set up a Special Investigation Team (SIT) just like the one which investigated Telgi scam. We should urge the court to monitor the investigation & SIT should comprise of officers who have earned a name as good detectives & have a clean service record.

इस हफ्ते की जिंदगी: हत्या एक पुराने दोस्त की

2011-06-12T20:30:00.002+09:00

“ अरे यार जरा चैक करो जे.डे. पर फायरिंग हुई है क्या?”

शनिवार की दोपहर करीब साढे तीन बजे एक परिचित पत्रकार के फोन पर पूछे इस सवाल ने होश उडा दिये। मैने तुरंत जे.डे के ही मोबाइल नंबर पर फोन लगाया, लेकिन उनका फोन बंद था। मेरी चिंता बढ गई। मैने मन ही मन प्रार्थना की कि ये खबर गलत निकले। मोबाइल फोन न लगने पर मैने उनके घाटकोपर वाले घर के लैंड लाईन पर फोन किया, जो उनकी मां ने उठाया।

“आंटी मैं जीतेंद्र बोल रहा हूं। डे कहां है?”

“अभी थोडी देर पहले ही वो घर से निकला है..घंटाभर हुआ होगा..”

मेरी आवाज की हडबडाहट सुनकर उन्हें कुछ गडबडी का शक हुआ। उन्होने मुझसे सवाल किया- “क्यों पूछ रहे हो ऐसा?”

….अब मैं उन्हें क्या बताता कि किस अनहोनी की आशंका की वजह से मैने उन्हें फोन किया है।

“डे का मोबाइल नहीं लग रहा है इसलिये इधर फोन किया था आपको...कोई बात नहीं”।

“…और कैसे हो तुम? सिर्फ टी.वी पर ही दिखते हो… कभी घर पर भी आओ”।

“जी आंटी जरूर आऊंगा”।

इतना कहकर मैने फोन रख दिया।

कुछ देर बाद खबर आई कि जे.डे. नहीं रहे। फायरिंग के बाद उन्हें हिरानंदानी अस्पताल लाया गया था, जहां उन्हें मृत घोषित कर दिया गया।

अबसे कुछ देर पहले ही मैं उनके अंतिम संस्कार में शरीक होकर घर लौटा हूं फिर भी यकीन नहीं हो रहा कि जे.डे. अब हमारे बीच नहीं हैं।

जे.डे. से मेरी पिछली बातचीत में ये तय हुआ था कि हम आज सुबह चाय पीने के लिये मिलेंगे..लेकिन जे.डे. से मेरी मुलाकात इस हालत में होगी ऐसा अंदेशा बिलकुल भी न था। पिछले हफ्ते जे.ड़े ने बातोंबातों में मुझे बताया था कि उनके पास एक ऐसी तस्वीर है जिसमें अंडरवर्लड डॉन दाऊद इब्राहिम का भाई इकबाल कासकर दाऊद के दुश्मन छोटा राजन के साथ कंधे से कंधा मिलाकर खडा है। मैने जे.डे से कहा कि वो तस्वीर वे मुझे दें दे। मैं अपने चैनल पर अंडरवर्लड से जुडी किसी खबर में उसका इस्तेमाल कर लूंगा। उसी तस्वीर को लेने के लिये आज सुबह का वक्त तय हुआ था।

जे.डे यानी ज्योतिंद्र डे से मेरी दोस्ती करीब 12 साल पुरानी थी। 1999 में जब मैने आज तक के लिये क्राईम रिपोर्टिंग करनी शुरू की तो इस क्षेत्र के जिन रिपोर्टरों से मेरा शुरूवाती परिचय हुआ था उनमें से एक थे जे.डे। जे.डे का इंडियन एक्सप्रैस में छपने वाला साप्ताहिक कॉलम “Notes from the underworld” मुझे बडा पसंद था और अपने कॉलेज के दिनों से ही मैं इस कॉलम को नियमित पढता था। क्राईम रिपोर्टरों की बिरादरी में मैं बिलकुल नया था और जे.डे उस वक्त तक इस क्षेत्र में एक बडा नाम बन चुके थे...लेकिन अपने रूतबे का गुरूर उनमें जरा भी नहीं दिखा। अपने से जूनियर क्राईम रिपोर्टरों की वे बेहिचक मदद करते थे। किसी अधिकारी का नंबर चाहिये या किसी गुनहगार का बैकग्राउंडर जानना हो जे.डे बिना किसी हिचकिचाहट जानकारी दे देते। यही वजह थी कि वे जूनियर क्राईम रिपोर्टरों के बीच कैप्टन साहब नाम से मशहूर हो गये थे, वैसे भी अपनी लंबी चौडी कद काठी की वजह से जे.डे किसी कमांडो की तरह ही दिखते थे और कई बार किसी आपराधिक वारदात के मौके पर कुछ पुलिसवाले उन्हें अपने ही बीच का समझ लेते। धीरे धीरे मैं और जे.डे काफी गहरे दोस्त बन गये। कई सालों तक दिनभर की खबरों के लिये एक दूसरे से सुबह फोन पर बात कर लेना हमारा रूटीन बन चुका था। कसारा के जंगल में चलने वाली गैरकानूनी आरा मिल, खदान माफिया, दाऊद इब्राहिम की रत्नागिरी में पुश्तैनी हवेली, अहमदनगर में चलनेवाली गैरकानूनी आरा मिलें वगैरह कुछ ऐसी बेहतरीन खबरें थीं जो हमने एक साथ की थीं।चूंकि वे अंग्रेजी अखबार में काम करते थे और मैं एक हिंदी न्यूज चैनल में इसलिये हमारे बीच सीधे तौर पर कोई प्रतिद्वंदिता नहीं थीं। कई खबरें हमने साथ में कीं जिनमें ज्यादातर खबरें ऐसीं थीं जो पर्यावरण को नुकसान पहुंचाने वाले लोगों के खिलाफ थीं। इस तरह की खबरें हमारी पसंदीदा खबरें थीं क्योंकि कॉलेज के दिनों से ही मैं पर्यावरण संरक्षण के अभियान का समर्थन करता रहा हूं और जे.डे ने भी अपने पत्रकारिता के करियर की शुरूवात इस क्षेत्र की रिपोर्टिंग से की थी। कई बार ऐसा होता कि उनके पास कोई सामग्री हाथ लगती जो अखबार में छपने लायक नहीं होती, लेकिन टीवी के लिये बेहतरीन स्टोरी हो सकती थी तो वे उसे मुझे दे देते। इसी तरह अगर मुझे कुछ ऐसा मिलता जो टीवी में दिखाने लायक नहीं रहता लेकिन अखबार के लिये अच्छी स्टोरी हो सकती थी तो वो मैं उन्हें दे देता।

जे.डे को ये बात अच्छी तरह से मालूम थी कि क्राईम रिपोर्टिंग के क्षेत्र में कामियाबी के साथ साथ साईड इफैक्ट के तौर पर नये दुश्मन भी मिलते हैं। यही वजह है कि अपनी सुरक्षा को लेकर वे हमेशा सचेत रहते थे। जे.डे को कैमरे पर आना बिलकुल पसंद नहीं था। कई टी.वी पत्रकारों ने अनेक बार क्राईम की कोई बडी खबर होने पर बतौर जानकार उनसे बाईट देने के लिये कहा लेकिन हर बार वे ये कहकर मना कर देते -“ बॉस अपनी शक्ल तो टीवी पर आने लायक है ही नहीं।” आमतौर पर भी वे अपने चेहरे का एक बडा हिस्सा टोपी पहनकर छुपाये रखते। किसी से बातचीत करते वक्त हमेशा उनकी नजर इर्द गिर्द घूमती रहती। मोटर साईकिल पर सफर करते वक्त हमेशा उनका ध्यान पीछे चल रहे वाहनों पर होता। जे.डे को अगर जरा भी शक होता कि कोई उनका पीछा कर रहा है तो वे तुरंत अपना रास्ता बदल देते। वैसे भी घर से दफ्तर के बीच आने जाने के लिये वे कभी एक रास्ते का इस्तेमाल नहीं करते थे।

हाल के सालों में मेरा उनसे मिलना कुछ कम हो गया था। ब्यूरो चीफ बनने के बाद फील्ड पर निकलने का मौका अब बहुत कम ही मिल पाता है, लेकिन फोन पर हम नियमित संपर्क में रहते। हर दो चार दिन में हमारी बात होती थी। आखिरी बार मेरी मुलाकात उनसे तब हुई थी जब मिड डे के पत्रकार टी.के. दिवेदी उर्फ अकेला की गिरफ्तारी के विरोध में सभी पत्रकार संगठनों ने प्रैस क्लब से लेकर मंत्रालय तक मोर्चा निकाला था।

जे.डे. दोस्तों के दोस्त थे और उनकी चिता को आग भी एक दोस्त ने ही दी। जे.डे के परिवार में उनकी बीमार मां, बहन और पत्नी के अलावा कोई नहीं है और ऐसे में अंतिम संस्कार के लिये कोई पुरूष सदस्य नहीं था। DNA अखबार के मुंबई ब्यूरो चीफ और हमारे दोस्त निखिल दीक्षित ने ये काम किया।

जे.डे तो चले गये लेकिन उनकी हत्या ने यही संदेश दिया है कि आनेवाला वक्त पत्रकारों के लिये और खतरनाक होने वाला है, ज्यादा चुनौतीपूर्ण होने वाला है और अपराध की दुनिया के राक्षस फिर एक बार बेखौफ होकर मुंबई को अपनी गिरफ्त में लेने के लिये निकल पडे हैं।

10 things I like & dislike about Baba Ramdeo.

2011-06-07T03:34:00.002+09:00

Like:

1) Baba Ramdeo with his communicative skills made optimum use of modern media(television per se) to popularize Yoga among masses.

2) Baba Ramdeo contributed to the popularity of Indian Yoga at the international sphere.

3) He intends to channelise his popularity for bringing about a socio-political change in the country.

4) He uses non-violent means to convey his message & press his demands.

5) He intends to become a politician & seems to be a cleaner new comer in the existing sordid scenario.

Dislike:

1) Baba Ramdeo’s unsubstantiated claims to cure any illness known in this universe through Yoga.

2) His act of running away from Ramleela Maidan when police came & by making himself an article of ridicule by attiring as a woman. If he would have followed Gandhian style of Satyagraha, he should have surrendered to the cops & then continued the fast behind the bars.

3) His statements after the Ramleela Maidan incident that “5000 people are missing..”, “ Police was going to kill me in encounter..”, “The police action was like Jalianwala Baug..” etc. Such statements seem to be examples of hyperbole & simplistic. They damage his credibility.

4) His loose attitude of letting politicians share his stage at Ramleela Maidan. Like Anna Hazare he should have strictly kept politicians away.

5) Some of his demands like doing away with high denominations notes & capital punishment to the black money offenders. ( When we are not sure whether terrorists like Ajmal Kasab & Afzal Guru who have beeen found guilty of carnage will face the hangman in our life time, such demand seems ridiculous.)

इस हफ्ते की जिंदगी: शैतान Narco Terrorism का।

2011-06-06T20:08:00.001+09:00

इस हफ्ते हम बात करेंगे Narco Terrorism पर जो हमारे देश के बच्चों से उनका बचपन छीन रहा है।हाल ही में बडे दिनों बाद मेरी मुलाकात हुई डॉक्टर यूसुफ मर्चंट से जो कि मुंबई में Drugs Abuse Information Research & Rehabilitation नाम का संगठन चलाते हैं। उनका बेटा समीर विल्सन कॉलेज में मेरा सहपाठी था। समीर के जरिये ही मेंरी दोस्ती उसके पिता डॉ.मर्चंट से हुई थी। डॉक्टर मर्चंट से गुफ्तगू करते हुए ड्रग्स की दुनिया के बारे में कई ऐसी बातें पता चलीं जो कि चौंकाने वालीं हैं, डरावनीं हैं।

मुंबई के कई स्कूली बच्चे ड्रग्स की गिरफ्त में हैं। डॉक्टर मर्चंट कई ऐसे बच्चों का इलाज कर रहे हैं जो कि दूध के दांत गिरने के चंद साल बाद ही ड्रग्स के खतरनाक जाल में फंस गये। अब तक आप शायद ये मान रहे होंगे कि कॉलेजों और विश्वविद्यालयों के छात्र ही ड्रग्स के शिकार बनते हैं, लेकिन नशीले पदार्थों की काली दुनिया से अब ये एक और हकीकत सामने आई है। ड्रग्स के कारोबारी अब स्कूल जाने वाले बच्चों को जहर की पुडिया बेच रहे हैं और उनका जाल दिन ब दिन फैलता ही जा रहा है। मुंबई और दिल्ली के कई बडे और नामचीन स्कूल के छात्र ड्रग्स के आदी बन रहे हैं। जो लोग ड्रग्स के शिकार लोगों के पुनर्वसन और सुधार का काम कर रहे हैं उनके मुताबिक पहले उनके पास आनेवाले ज्यादातर मरीजों की उम्र 20 से 30 साल के बीच होती थी, लेकिन अब उनके पास 12 साल तक की उम्र के बच्चे इलाज के लिये आ रहे हैं। अगर आंकडों की बात करें तो हर सौ में से 25 ड्रग्स के शिकार शख्स की उम्र 18 साल से कम है।

90 की दशक की शुरूवात से लेकर साल 2005 तक भारत के बडे शहरों में ड्रग्स का गैरकानूनी कारोबार काबू में था। नशीले पदार्थ बिकते जरूर थे लेकिन आज की तुलना में बहुत ही कम..लेकिन साल 2005 के बाद हालात बिगड गये। सरकारी एजेंसियां ढीली पड गईं और ड्रग्स माफिया से जुडे लोग मजबूत होते गये। वक्त के साथ बाजार में बिकने वाले ड्रग्स भी बदले और उनको खरीदने वाले भी। 90 के दशक के पहले तक ड्रग्स के बाजार में हेरोईन की खूब मांग थी। नशेडी युवाओं के बीच हेरोईन सबसे लोकप्रिय ड्रग्स मानी जाती थी लेकिन अब हेरोइन बाजार से गायब है, हेरोईन की मांग लगभग खत्म सी हो गई है। हेरोइन की जगह अब ले ली है कोकेन और एलएसडी ने। ड्रग्स लेने वाले स्कूली बच्चे ज्यादातर कोकेन और एलएसडी के आदी हैं।

इन दिनों ड्रग्स के बाजार में कोकेन और एलएसडी का शुमार प्रीमियम ड्रग्स में किया जाता है लेकिन हशीश और चरस की बात करें तो वे बाजार में इतने आम हो गये हैं जैसे सिग्रेट और तंबाकू। जो बच्चे कोकेन और एलएसडी नहीं खरीद पाते वो इन सस्ते ड्रग्स का सेवन करते हैं।

सवाल ये है कि आखिर बच्चों तक कैसे पहुंचते हैं ये ड्रग्स? बच्चों की जान से खेलकर कौन मुनाफा कमा रहा है? क्या हमारे कानून के हाथ उन तक नहीं पहुंच रहे? डॉक्टर मर्चंट के मुताबिक पडोसी मुल्क पाकिस्तान की खुफिया एजेंसी आईएसआई न केवल आतंकवाद के जरिये हमारे देश में खून खराबा कराती रही है बल्कि उसने नार्को टेरेरिज्म की शक्ल में भी हमारे देश के खिलाफ जंग छेड रखी है। हाल के सालों में पाकिस्तान की ओर से भारत में ड्रग्स की बडे पैमाने पर तस्करी शुरू की गई है। नाईजीरियाई और दूसरे अफ्रीकी देशों के नागरिक इस काम में बिचौलिये की भूमिका निभाते हैं और इसलिये पाकिस्तान पर से नकाब नहीं उठ पाता।

अब सवाल ये उठता है कि आप अपने बच्चों को ड्रग्स का आदी होने से बचाये कैसें और कैसे पता करें कि वो नशे का आदी बन रहा है। जानकारों के मुताबिक ये काम ज्यादा मुश्किल नहीं। कुछ ऐसी बातें हैं जो संकेत देती है कि बच्चा ड्र्ग्स का आदी हो गया है जैसे-

- नींद के पैटर्न में अचानक बदलाव।अगर वो रात को देर से सोता है और सुबह काफी देर से उठता है।

- बातचीत करते वक्त नजर मिलाने से कतराता है।

- अचानक से उसके पैसों की मांग बढ गई है या फिर वो घर से पैसे चुरा रहा है।

- अचानक उसके दोस्तों की संख्या बढ गई है।

- अगर वो चरस लेता है तो खूब खायेगा, लेकिन अगर वो कोकेन या कोई दूसरा ड्रग्स ले रहा है तो उसकी खुराक बिलकुल कम हो जायेगी।

- अगर वो बाथरूम में असामान्य रूप से ज्यादा वक्त बिता रहा है।

- घर में अगर कई सारी जली हुई माचिस की तीलियां मिलतीं हैं।

- पढाई और खेलकूद से उसकी दिलचस्पी कम हो रही है।

अगर माता –पिता को अपने बच्चे में इस तरह के बदलाव दिख रहे हैं तो उन्हें सावधान रहने की और बच्चे की निगरानी करने की जरूरत है। Narco Terrorism के शैतान की नजर आपके बच्चे पर है।

"No Nonsense Blog" is now "Address to the Nation."

2011-06-06T17:39:00.001+09:00

Although, the name has changed but the content will still adhere to its "No Nonsense" character & will continue to focus on issues which make sense for Indian urban citizens. Henceforth, the attempt will be to make this blog more vibrant & disciplined with regular entries. The address remains the same: www.jitendradiary.blogspot.com.
Happy reading.

मुंबई के रिपोर्टर का मानसून (कविता)

2011-06-04T17:12:00.000+09:00

आई आई आई जमकर बरसात,

छाता, रेनकोट अब ले लो साथ,

बूम माईक को टोपी पहनाओ

पाकिट, मोबाइल पर प्लास्टिक चढवाओ

पानी भरने कि खबर जो आये,

ट्रेन, सडक जब बंद हो जाये

निकल कर औफिस से सरपट भागो

हिंदमाता, परेल पर ओबी मांगो

कुर्ला, सायन भी छूट न जाये

मिलन सबवे को भी दिखलायें

भीग भीग कर करो रिपोर्टिंग

काले बादलों से हो गई है सेटिंग

स्टोरी आईडिया देने का टेंशन नहीं आये

जब बादल रिमझिम कृपा बरसाये

खाओ गर्मागरम वडापाव, भजिया प्लेट

संभल कर रहना गडबड न हो पेट

भीगने में आता है खूब मजा

तबियत को मिल जाती है खराब होने की वजह

जब सर्दी, खांसी, सिरदर्द सताये

विक्स, बाम और ब्रांडी काम आये

यहां गिरी बिजली, वहां उखडा पेड

लगातार चेक करते रहो फायर ब्रिगेड

अगर बडी कोई बिल्डिंग गिर जाये

दिन और रात एक हो जाये

मीठी नदी बडी है कडवी

नजर रहे उसकी सरहद भी

लाईव चैट और वाक थ्रू गिरवाओ

वक्त मिले तो पैकेज कटवाओ

बीएमसी, सरकार को बचने न देना

2005 की 26 जुलाई याद कर लेना

वीकेंड पर पिकनिक को जाना

झरनो में फिर खूब नहाना

भीगा भागा सा है न्यूज रूम

सभी रिपोर्टरों को हैप्पी मानसून

-महाकवि जीतेंद्र दीक्षित J

इस हफ्ते की जिंदगी: गैंगवार का मीडिया माध्यम।

2011-05-28T19:29:00.001+09:00

17 मई की रात मुंबई की पाकमोडिया स्ट्रीट पर हुई फायरिंग की वारदात ने फिर एक बार न्यूज चैनलों पर अंडरवर्लड और गैंगवार से जुडी खबरों का दौर वापस ला दिया । फिर से एक बार दाऊद इब्राहिम, छोटा राजन और छोटा शकील के वही सालों पुराने फाईल शॉट्स सभी चैनल दिखाने लगे। ज्यादातर चैनल इसी सवाल के साथ खबर दिखा रहे थे- क्या मुंबई में फिर छिडेगा गैंगवार? क्या अपने इलाके में हुए शूटआउट का दाऊद बदला लेगा? मीडिया की पहुंच और मीडिया की ताकत ने अंडरवर्लड के खिलाडियों का भी ध्यान अपनी ओर खींचा और जैसा कि वे हर चीज में अपना फायदा खोजते हैं, मीडिया को भी अपने फायदे के लिये इस्तेमाल करने की गुंजाइश उन्हें नजर आई। जाने-अनजाने मीडिया ने भी उनका मकसद पूरा करने में मदद की। उनका मकसद था अपने दुश्मनों तक संदेश पहुंचाना, लोगों के बीच अपने खौफ को बरकरार रखना और अपनी ताकत की नुमाइश करना।

शूटआऊट के तीसरे दिन मुझे छोटा राजन का फोन आया। राजन ने कहा कि शूटआउट का टार्गेट दाऊद का भाई इकबाल कासकर नहीं था, लेकिन इलाके में उसकी गतिविधियां बहुत बढ गईं थीं इसलिये इकबाल को चेतावनी देने के लिये ये शूटआउट करवाया गया। राजन के मुताबिक शूटआउट नागपाडा के एक युवक उमेद ने करवाया था, जो कि उसके प्रति वफादार है। राजन के मुताबिक उमेद ने उसको जानकारी देने के बाद ही पाकमोडिया स्ट्रीट में फायरिंग करवाई थी। उमेद के निशाने पर इकबाल कासकर नहीं बल्कि मारा गया आरिफ और हनीफ तलवार नाम का एक शखस था। राजन का कहना था कि उमेद दोनो को इसलिये मारना चाहता था क्योंकि अगर वो उन्हें नहीं मारता तो दोनो उमेद को मार देते। उमेद के शूटरों ने उस रात आरिफ नाम के शख्स को तो मार दिया लेकिन हनीफ तलवार बच गया। आरिफ और हनीफ, उमेद को इसलिये मारना चाहते थे क्योंकि पिछले साल उमेद ने नागपाडा इलाके में ही दाऊद के 2 लोगों पर अलग अलग वारदातों में फायरिंग करवाई थी। एक वारदात में दाऊद का गुर्गा छोटे मियां मारा गया जबकि दूसरी फायरिंग दाऊद के गुर्गे आसिफ दाढी पर करवाई गई थी। दाढी उस फायरिंग में बच गया था, लेकिन 2 बेगुनाह लोगों की उसमें मौत हो गई थी।

मुझे फोन करने वाला छोटा राजन ही है इस बात का मुझे यकीन था क्योंकि इसके पहले भी मैं राजन की आवाज सुन चुका हूं और मेरे पास राजन की आवाज के सैंपल भी मौजूद हैं जो कई साल पहले मुझे एक पुलिस अधिकारी दोस्त ने दिये थे। राजन मुझे इस शूटआउट के बारे में ये जानकारी इसलिये दे रहा था क्योंकि इस जानकारी को वो टी.वी पर देखना चाहता था। शूटआउट की जिम्मदारी लेकर वो ये साबित करना चाहता था कि उसका गिरोह कमजोर नहीं है और वो आज भी दाऊद के गढ में घुसकर वारदातों को अंजाम दे सकता है और अगर चाहे तो दाऊद के भाई तक को अपना निशाना बना सकता है। मैने उसकी ओर से दी गई सारी जानकारी नोट कर ली लेकिन उसे ये बता दिया कि उसका इंटरव्यू मेरे चैनल पर नहीं दिखाया जायेगा। जो भी जानकारी उसने दी है उसे टीवी पर मैं खुद बताऊंगा। दरअसल हमारे चैनल ने News Broadcaster Association (NBA) के उस नियम को अपनाया है जिसमें किसी भी अंडरवर्लड डॉन या भगोडे आरोपी को अपनी बात रखने के लिये या फिर किसी को धमकाने के लिये न्यूज चैनल माध्यम नहीं बनेंगे। अगर इस तरह कोई शख्स कोई जानकारी दे रहा है तो वो चैनल पर दिखाई जा सकती है, लेकिन फोन पर लाईव इंटरव्यू या फिर उसकी आवाज को रिकॉर्ड कर सुनाना प्रतिबंधित है।

छोटा राजन से बातचीत खत्म होने के बाद मैने मुंबई पुलिस की क्राईम ब्रांच में अपने सूत्रों और कुछ आला अधिकारियों से फोन पर बात की। उन्होने इस बात की पृष्टि की कि पाकमोडिया शूटआउट के मामले में उन्हें उमेद की तलाश है और उमेद छोटा राजन के लिये काम करता है। खबर की पृष्टि होने के बाद मैने चैनल पर एक लाईव चैट दिया और खबर उतार दी कि पाकमोडिया शूटआउट छोटा राजन गिरोह की ओर से करवाया गया।

मेरा अपना आंकलन ये है कि छोटा राजन इस शूटआउट के बाद सिर्फ बहती गंगा में हाथ धो रहा है। उमेद ने अपनी व्यकितगत दुश्मनी के चलते इस शूटआउट को अंजाम दिलवाया था लेकिन चूंकि वो राजन के लिये काम कर चुका है और शूटआउट राजन के कट्टर दुश्मन दाऊद के आंगन में हुआ इसलिये राजन ने क्रेडिट लेने का मौका नहीं छोडा।

बहरहाल ये शूटआऊट राजन की मर्जी से हुआ हो या नहीं, मेरे चैनल पर खबर के उतरने के घंटेभर के भीतर ही एक प्रतिदवंदवी हिंदी चैनल पर दाऊद के दाहिने हाथ छोटा शकील का फोनो (फोन पर लिया गया इंटरव्यू) चलने लगा। छोटा शकील ने उस फोनो में अपनी आक्रमकता और गुस्सा दिखाने की पूरी कोशिश की थी- “हम भी बदला लेंगे उनसे..”, “घर में घुसकर मारेंगे..” ,“क्या जरूरत थी ये करने की..”, “एक बेगुनाह को मारा है उन्होने...”, “फैमिली वालों को हाथ नहीं लगाने का रूल उन्होने तोडा है” वगैरह जैसे धमकी भर वाक्य बोल कर वो चैनल पर मिले एयरटाईम का पूरा इस्तेमाल कर रहा था। दुर्भाग्यवश इस चैनल ने NBA के उस नियम को नहीं माना कि किसी गैंगस्टर की आवाज चैनल पर नहीं सुनानी है, राष्ट्र के नाम संदेश देने के लिये उसे मंच नहीं देना है।

दोनो डॉन एक दूसरे को टीवी के जरिये धमका रहे थे। गैंगवार में पिस्तौल और रिवॉल्वर का इस्तेमाल करने वाले ये अपराधी अपनी लडाई टीवी चैनलों को फोन करके लड रहे थे। टीवी पर चल रहा था गैंगवार। एक पर राजन था तो दूसरे पर उसका दुश्मन शकील। मुझे ये सब देख कर हंसी भी आ रही थी और गुस्सा भी। दोनो डॉन के बोले वाक्य किसी फिल्मी डायलॉग से कम न थे। दुख की बात थी कि उनकी आपसी लडाई में न्यूज चैनल माध्यम बन गये थे...लेकिन दोनो डॉन क्या कह रहे हैं न्यूज चैनल इस बात को नजर अंदाज भी नहीं कर सकते क्योंकि सवाल भारत की आर्थिक राजधानी मुंबई की कानून व्यवस्था का भी था और कई बार गिरोहों के बीच चलने वाले इस आपसी गैंगवार का शिकार मुंबई के आम बेगुनाह नागरिक भी हो चुके हैं।

मीडिया की इस बात पर भी नजर रहती है कि पुलिस इन आपराधिक गिरोहों को आपस में भिडने से रोकने के लिये क्या कर रही है। वैसे कुछ पुलिस अधिकारियों का मानना है डॉन के फोनो चैनल पर दिखाकर मीडिया ही उनका महिमामंडन करती है और उन्हें बडा बनाती है। ये एक कडवा सच है जिससे मैं सहमत हूं। बात साल 2005 की है। एक सुबह मुझे विदेशी नंबर से एक फोन आया। सामने वाले ने दावा कि वो रवि पुजारी बोल रहा है और उसने अभी अभी अपने शूटरों के जरिये मुंबई के मशहूर वकील मजीद मेमन पर फायरिंग करवाई है। मैने तुरंत तत्कालीन पुलिस कमिश्नर ए.एन.रॉय को फोन पर इसकी जानकारी दी। उन्होने इस बात की पृष्टि की कि एडवोकेट मेमन पर फायरिंग हुई है, लेकिन वो बाल बाल बच गये हैं। उस वक्त NBA नहीं बना था और न ही ऐसा कोई नियम टीवी चैनलों ने खुद अपनाया था कि गैंगस्टरों का फोनो नहीं दिखाएंगे। हमारे चैनल ने तय किया कि मजीद मेमन पर फायरिंग का दावा करते हुए रवि पुजारी का लाईव फोनो चैनल पर दिखाया जायेगा। जब एंकर ने पुजारी से लाईव सवाल जवाब शुरू किये तो पुजारी ने इस मौके का पूरा गलत फायदा उठाने की कोशिश की। उसने न केवल मेमन पर फिरसे हमाला करने की धमकी दी बल्कि साथ साथ शहर के कई बिल्डरों और कारोबारियों को भी धमकाया। ये बात मुझे बिलकुल गलत लगी। रवि पुजारी उन दिनों छोटा राजन गिरोह से अलग होकर अपना अलग गिरोह खडा कर रहा था और इसके लिये वो हमारे चैनल का इस्तेमाल कर रहा था। जब लोग जानेंगे कि रवि पुजारी कौन है तो वे उससे डरेंगे और डरकर उस तक पैसे भी पहुंचाएंगे। मैने तय कर लिया कि अब चाहे जो भी रवि पुजारी को चैनल के इस्तेमाल का मौका नहीं देना है। उस घटना के बाद रवि पुजारी के गिरोह ने 2-3 बार और फायरिंग की वारदातों को अंजाम दिया। हर बार फायरिंग की जिम्मेदारी लेने के लिये मुझे फोन करता इस उम्मीद में कि मैं फिर से उसका चैनल पर लाईव इंटरव्यू करवाउंगा, लेकिन उसे मुझसे नाउम्मीद ही होना पडता। मैं हर बार उसके फोन की जानकारी क्राईम ब्रांच के अपने परिचित अधिकारियों को दे देता और साथ ही रवि पुजारी को भी ये बता देता कि मैं ऐसा कर रहा हूं। मेरे साथ अपनी दाल न गलती देख रवि पुजारी फिर दूसरे चैनलों को फोन करने लगा। पुजारी की तरह ही संतोष शेट्टी और बंटी पांडे जैसे छोटा राजन से अलग हुए दूसरे गैंगस्टरों ने भी अलग अलग चैनलों को फोन करके मुंबई अंडरवर्लड़ में अपनी “ब्रांडिंग” करने की कोशिश की।

फोन चाहे छोटा राजन की ओर से आया हो या फिर रवि पुजारी की ओर से, हर बार मैं बिना देर किये इसकी जानकारी मुंबई पुलिस को जरूर दे देता हूं। (वैसे इसकी जरूरत नहीं है क्योंकि मेरे सूत्रों के मुताबिक पुलिस और चंद एजेंसियां पहले से चुनिंदा क्राईम रिपोर्टरों का फोन सुनती रहतीं हैं।) मजीद मेमन पर हुई फायरिंग के मामले की जांच मेरे एक मित्र पुलिस अधिकारी के पास ही आई। उसने हिचकिचाते हुए मुझसे पूछा कि क्या मैं उस मामले में गवाह बन पाऊंगा। मैने तुरंत अपनी सहमति दे दी। बतौर पत्रकार हमारा काम सच को खोजना और उसे लोगों तक पहुंचाना है, ऐसे में कठघरे में खडे रहकर अदालत के सामने सच बोलने से क्या परहेज। अदालत में मैने अपनी गवाही दी। पहले सरकारी वकील ने मुझसे सवाल पूछे और फिर बचाव पक्ष के 4 वकीलों ने।

आक्रमक तेवर, भौंहे टेढी कर, कडे शब्दों के साथ सवाल पूछकर बचाव पक्ष का हर वकील अदालत के सामने यही साबित करना चाहता था कि मैं पुलिस का आदमी हूं और पुलिस के कहने पर ही मैं ये बयान दे रहा हूं कि मजीद मेमन पर फायरिंग रवि पुजारी ने करवाई। मैने सभी की आंखों में आंख डालकर उनके जवाब दिये और अपने शरारती स्वभाव के चलते कुछेक को चिढाने के लिये उलटा उनपर सवाल दाग दिये और गर्मागर्म बहस भी की। कई बार जज को हमें शांत कराना पडा। मेरी गवाही के दौरान वो शूटर भी बतौर आरोपी अदालत में मौजूद था जिस पर रवि पुजारी के आदेश से मेमन पर फायरिंग करने का आरोप था।

अंडरवर्लड की खबरों में ड्रामा भी होता है, एक्शन भी और रोमांच भी। बिजनी, पानी, मकान, महंगाई जैसी नियमित खबरों और बयानबाजी पर आधारित ज्यादातर राजनीतिक खबरों से हटकर जो लोग न्यूज चैनलों पर कुछ देखना चाहते हैं उन्हें अंडरवर्लड की खबरें दिलचस्प लगतीं हैं। चैनल भी दर्शकों की इस पसंद से वाकिफ हैं ही और इसलिये इस तरह की खबरों को न्यूज चैनलों पर तरजीह मिलती है। सवाल बस इतना है कि अंडरवर्लड का हथियार बने बिना अंडरवर्लड की रिपोर्टिंग कैसे हो?