Ten Outsiders: How many Insiders?

The Indian government is leaning heavily on the West. This spells bad news. It will force us to fight un-winnable, highly destructive wars with damaging, long-term consequences

Sanjay Kapoor Delhi

The television footage at the Chatrapati Shivaji Stadium-CST (VT), on the day the terror struck Mumbai on November 26, is illuminating. Young men with backpacks casually move in with their sub-machine guns. Typical of trained commandoes, they routinely look over their shoulder to ascertain whether anyone is following them. Quite evidently, the young men were no casual suicide bombers or fidayeen fighters that have confronted Indian security forces in the past. Not even like those who stormed Parliament in December 2002.

The Mumbai terrorists seemed to belong to ‘Special Forces' of an army backed by quality intelligence out to accomplish an agenda that still remains shrouded in mystery. Walid Phares, an American expert on counter-terrorism, claims: "If you look at the scheme, the structure, you will see the interests of the Taliban, Al-Qaeda, the execution by Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) and security provided by an intelligence apparatus in Pakistan." Phares believes that the decision for the attack took place at the top echelons of Al-Qaeda and execution was "outsourced" to LeT.

The immediate fallout of the attack has been stirring tensions between India and Pakistan and aggressive saber-rattling not witnessed since the attack at India's Parliament. The attack has raised the specter of the entire South Asia getting destabilised.

Likelihood of tensions could result in the relocation of Pakistani army from their western border facing Afghanistan to India. Besides easing pressure on the Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA), perceived by the US as the epicenter of terrorism, this move could leave international forces stationed in Afghanistan vulnerable to Taliban attacks. Experts believe that the larger geo-political objectives of the attack were to create circumstances where the radical section of the Pakistani army in consort with LeT overthrows President Asif Ali Zardari. Such a development before the swearing in of Barack Obama as US President could present a real and clear challenge to his foreign policy.

However, the Mumbai attack and the manner in which it was executed points to a more complex reality. Interestingly, the Versace T-shirt clad young face of terror, Mohammad Ajmal Kasab, was brought down by baton-wielding Mumbai policemen. Nine other terrorists were smoked out from high value locations like Taj Mahal Hotel and Oberoi Trident. Interrogation of Kasab has provided some details of the origin of these terrorists and where they were trained, but there is little likelihood of Kasab knowing the full contours of this operation, the real people behind the attack, the ground support they got when they took the amphibian route to reach the coastline near the Gateway of India.

Early reports suggested that they came in a fishing trawler after they were dropped by a Pakistani ship. Security experts say that the Pakistani ship, probably, dropped them in Indian waters from where they took the trawler to come ashore. Russian security agencies have been claiming that the Mumbai terror attack was facilitated by Dawood Ibrahim's underworld.