Rahul Gandhi stuttered, stammered and blundered hos way through the TimesNow Interview recently.
Mumbai Terror Attack
His insensitive remarks on the killing spree of Sikhs after the assassination of Indira Gandhi and his refusal to condemn openly the likes of Sajjan Kumar and Jagdish Tytler made one wince.
I tried to find out what Rahul Gandhi was doing at the time of Mumbai Terror Attack.
This is what he was doing, the would be PM of India,If , and a Big If, the party comes to power in India!
Note that it is not a rag sheet but India Today.
Even before the tears of Major Sandeep Unnikrishnan’s mother could dry up, Congress general secretary and heir apparent Rahul Gandhi went partying with his pals at a farmhouse on Delhi’s outskirts.
The Prince partied hard, till 5 in the morning, on Sunday at the ‘sangeet’ for the forthcoming wedding of Samir Sharma, his childhood friend. They were at a sprawling farmhouse at Radhey Mohan Chowk, the haven of people who lead charmed lives beyond Chhatarpur.
Just a day earlier, his sister Priyanka Vadra had caused a flutter by saying the late Indira Gandhi would have “made us very proud” by the way she would have reacted to the Mumbai terror strikes. Mumbai appeared to be far from her brother’s mind as he boogied at the farmhouse with Samir Sharma, US-based furniture designer son of Captain Satish Sharma, the late Rajiv Gandhi’s flying partner who nursed the First Family’s pocketborough, Rae Bareli, till Sonia Gandhi chose to contest from there in 2004.
The Prince seemed to be completely out of sync with the mood of the nation post-26/11. Since Wednesday night, officials have been cancelling parties they were meant to host and even restaurants called off special events.
Saturday night’s ‘sangeet’ was a lavish affair. It was hosted by Leena Musafir, sister of the woman with whom Samir is getting married, and her husband Inder. The party was attended by over 800 guests, including regulars at Page 3 dos. “When everyone is cancelling parties or just keeping them low-key, Rahul Gandhi had no business to be celebrating. His action makes us lose faith in future leaders,” said Ajay Bahl, a leading corporate lawyer who was trapped in the thick of the action on 26/11 at The Oberoi, Mumbai, but managed to escape with the help of the hotel staff.
The Gandhis, including Sonia Gandhi’s mother Paola Maino, were present in strength at the 2004 wedding of Samir’s sister, Sarika, who is married to actorturned- TV producer Rahul Bhatt. Sarika and Rahul now manage a television production house.
The Mumbai attack 2008 is being linked to Lashkar-e-Taiba chief Hafiz Saeed.
Mumbai Attack 2008
But documents unearthed in Abbotabad when Osama Bin Laden was killed indicated Bin Laden having played a key role in the 26/11 attacks in Mumbai in 2008, in spite of having been dead since around 2001.(?)
The evidence points to Bin Laden having played a key role in the 26/11 attacks in Mumbai in 2008, in spite of having been dead since around 2001.
All this was unearthed by US Special Forces in May 2011 when they were involved in an incident at a CIA safe house in Abbottabad, Pakistan, and took back bagfuls of documents and computer equipment.
According to Bruce Riedel, Pakistan terrorism expert and former advisor to Barack Obama, “The documents and files found in Abbottabad showed a close connection between Bin Laden and Saeed, right up to May 2011.
ndian home minister P Chidambaram has welcomed the news.
He did not mention the planner of the Mumbai attacks, David Headley, who worked for the US Drugs Enforcement Administration, which works closely with the CIA.
Slamming the US, Lashkar-e-Taiba chief Hafiz Saeed told Mossad’s Al-Jazeera: “I think the US is frustrated because we are carrying out countrywide protests against the resumption of Nato supplies and drone strikes.”
Riedel said the Abbottabad information also “suggested a much larger role by (the CIA’s) al Qaeda in the planning of the Mumbai attacks than many assumed.”
He said the US now has evidence that Bin Laden may have seen the reconnaissance reports of David Headley, allegedly the CIA’s scout for the 26/11 attacks.
Indian experts on Lashkar have pointed out the relationship between the outfit and the CIA, and ISI, has been known for years.
A double agent masterminded the Islamist terrorist attack on Mumbai that killed 166 people in 2008 while he was being used by the CIA to hunt Osama bin Laden.
When India discovered his role, it accused Washington of having sacrificed Mumbai for the prime target of the al-Qaeda leader.
David Headley, a former drug smuggler, was acting as a “highly prized counterterrorism asset” for America, according to former officers in the Joint Terrorism Task Force, who said his covert career had run for 11 years.
Headley had proposed the Mumbai attack in an effort to win the confidence of the leaders of Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT), a banned Pakistani Islamist organisation with connections to al-Qaeda.
He conceived the operation, visited Mumbai seven times to reconnoitre the Taj Mahal Palace Hotel and other targets, and provided supplies and GPS co-ordinates for the 10 Pakistani gunmen who took part.
India was traumatised by the three-day attack on its commercial capital in November 2008 when the gunmen rampaged through Mumbai’s streets and hotels, killing and wounding more than 300 people.
US-Indian relations fell to an all-time low after Indian intelligence uncovered Headley’s activities. Irate officials claimed that Headley’s American controllers had allowed the plot to go ahead in order to safeguard his key role in the hunt for the al-Qaeda leader.
The CIA responded that it had repeatedly warned India of the impending assault. In a furious exchange it accused its counterparts in Delhi of “incompetence”.
At Headley’s trial in Washington this year the judge considered the death penalty but the prosecution opposed it on the grounds that he had provided “unusual co-operation”. He was sentenced to 35 years.
The true extent of Headley’s co-operation has never been revealed. During the trial the impression was given that he had begun to reveal secrets about his jihadist life after his arrest in Chicago in 2009.
What my sources tell me is that he was an agent of the CIA who turned rogue. He got associated with the drug mafia in Afghanistan which is directly connected to the terror networks which are controlled by the ISI. The Indian Intelligence officials say that despite Headley turning rogue, the CIA did nothing to stop him despite having every possible information on him. They let him get away with what he was doing in Af-Pak. In fact the CIA even knew when he began cozying up to the ISI and the Lashkar-e-Tayiba and did nothing really to stop him. Over the years, he became a Lashkar operative which in turn would mean that he had the blessings of the ISI. Being an American national did help him a lot since even the ISI was aware that his entry and exit into India would be easier taking into account his nationality. India, until 26/11 did have an America fixation and never really did check on the antecedents of a person holding an American passport.
Do you feel that at some level, Indian intelligence was involved in the facilitation and or cover up of the Mumbai attacks?
I would not agree with this entirely. Although I do believe that they could have issued the alerts to the Bombay police with more seriousness. There was a specific alert that was given to the police in the month of September two months prior to the attack. The alert clearly stated that Bombay would be attacked from the seas. They had even gathered intelligence based on the statements of an operative known as Sabahuddin Ahmed. However the Bombay police chose to ignore the alert. What the Intelligence Bureau could have done is convince the Bombay police about the seriousness of this alert.
Documents relating to the Link of Pakistani Extremists and ISI were released by The Government of India.
These have been uploaded in Public Intelligence.
Have a peep in here.
David Headley’s Diaries have ISI contact Numbers.
‘The following documentation was released by the Government of India’s Press Information Bureauwith this description: “A report which appeared in the media today states that the Chicago trial of the 2008 Mumbai attacks will be held from the 16th of this month. The report also states that the federal prosecutors indicted some more suspects last week in this case. Information available with the Government of India on the five persons named as accused in the second charge-sheet filed by the United States Government in the case is given in the annexure.”
This document was originally obtained and published by the Indian Broadcasting Network. However, it was originally uploaded to Scribd without the ability to be printed or downloaded. We have extricated the document to remove these restrictions, allowing the document to now be downloaded, shared and printed. Click the Link just below.
“At present David Coleman Headley has been put under the witness protection programme of the Fedaral Government and he is being treated as the star witness in the trial of Tahawwur Hussan Rana. Rana’s trial is expected to start with effect from 01 November, 2010.
03. During the interrogation, Headley cooperated with the NIA team and answered all the questions put to him except questions pertaining to his immediate family members.
04. Headley during his interrogation unambiguously admitted his role as an LeT operative who was a part of the conspiracy to wage war against India.
05. During the interrogation he mentioned the roles of various LeT opertatives which inter alia include Hafiz Saeed the Ammeer of LeT(chief), Zaki-ur-Rehman Lakhvi the chief military commander and various middle level commanders of LeT. (Sajid Majid, Muzzammil,Abdur Rehman @ Pasha, Abu Alqama, Abu Qahafa, Abu Anas, Abdul Aziz, Abu Hamza, Yaqub)
06. He ha clearly mentioned the role of ISI officials who have a profound influence and a great control over the top brass of the LeT. He further stated that he used to separately brief his ISI handler after each reconnaissance visit to Mumbai. He also carried out certain exclusive reconnaissance visit to Mumbai. He also carried out certain exclusive reconnaissance tasks for his ISI handlers.
Hafiz declared that this move is only to placate India and challenged the US to come and get him as he is not hiding in caves, a clear allusion to Osama Bin Laden.
Hafiz Saeed, Le T Chief
The terror Chief who is actively supported by the ISI of Pakistan knows his marbles.
He knows that Pakistan is there to protect him.
But then it depends on the Pakistan’s political equations.
Let’s watch who guessed it right the US or Hafiz.
One thing is for sure-another crisis for Pakistan looming large and possibly a step for the US to move into Pakistan after Iran.
Refers to:
“I am here, I am visible. America should give that reward money to me,” said Hafiz Mohammad Saeed, referring to the fact that the bounty was given to a man whose whereabouts are not a mystery. “I will be inLahore tomorrow. America can contact me whenever it wants to.”
Analysts have said Pakistan is unlikely to arrest Saeed, founder of the militant group Lashkar-e-Taiba, because of his alleged links with the country’s intelligence agency and the political danger of doing Washington‘s bidding in a country where anti-American sentiment is rampant.
Saeed, 61, has been accused of orchestrating the 2008 attacks in the Indian city of Mumbai that killed 166 people, including six American citizens. But he operates openly in Pakistan, giving public speeches and appearing on TV talk shows.
The United States has offered a $10 million bounty for the founder of the Pakistani militant group blamed for the 2008 attacks in the Indian city of Mumbai that killed 166 people, a move that could complicate U.S.-Pakistan relations at a tense time.
Hafiz Mohammad Saeed founded Lashkar-e-Taiba in the 1980s, allegedly with Pakistani support to pressure archenemy India over the disputed territory of Kashmir. Pakistan banned the group in 2002 under pressure from the U.S., but it operates with relative freedom – even doing charity work using government money.
The U.S. has designated Lashkar-e-Taiba and its social welfare wing Jamaat-ud-Dawwa as foreign terrorist organizations. Intelligence officials and terrorism experts say the group has expanded its focus beyond India and has plotted attacks in Europe and Australia. Some have called it “the next al-Qaida” and fear it could set its sights on the U.S.
Saeed operates openly in Pakistan, giving public speeches and appearing on TV talk shows. The U.S. also offered up to $2 million for Lashkar-e-Taiba’s deputy leader, Hafiz Abdul Rahman Makki, who is also Saeed’s brother-in-law.
The reward for “information leading to the arrest and conviction” of Saeed is one of the highest offered by the U.S. and is equal to the amount for Taliban chief Mullah Omar. Only Ayman al-Zawahri, who succeeded Osama bin Laden as al-Qaida chief, fetches a higher bounty at $25 million.
The bounties were posted on the U.S. State Department Rewards for Justice website late Monday.
The website describes Saeed as a former professor of Arabic and engineering who heads an organization “dedicated to installing Islamist rule over parts of India and Pakistan.” It also noted that six of the people killed in the 2008 Mumbai attacks were American citizens.
A Pakistani-American, David Coleman Headley, has pleaded guilty in a U.S. court to helping Lashkar-e-Taiba plan the Mumbai attacks.
Indian External Affairs Minister S.M. Krishna welcomed the U.S. announcement, saying it would signal to Lashkar-e-Taiba and its patrons that the international community remains united in fighting terrorism.
“Lashing out at the US for putting a bounty of USD 10 million on his head, a combative Hafiz Mohammad Saeed on Tuesday said Washington was “frustrated” with him for his countrywide protests against the resumption of NATO supplies and drone strikes. “We are not hiding in caves for bounties to be set on finding us. I think the US is frustrated because we are taking out countrywide protests against the resumption of NATO supplies and drone strikes,” LeT founder Saeed was quoted as saying by Al-Jazeera news channel.
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