Terrorists got caught — and got away

The fishing trawler that brought the terrorists to Mumbai was stopped by an Indian patrol vessel but let off because they showed fake Gujarat Govt cards issued to fishermen, reports Stavan Desai. Special.

The hijacked fishing trawler that brought the 10-man squad of terrorists to Mumbai’s shore on the night of November 25 was actually stopped by an unidentified Indian coastal patrol vessel — and let off because the suicide fighters flashed fake Gujarat government cards issued to fishermen, the lone terrorist now in police custody has revealed.

HT Image

Inquiries are now under way with the Coast Guard, the coastal wing of the Customs and the Border Security Force (which patrols a disputed area called the Sir Creek area) to identify the vessel.

In a disclosure that indicates yet another failure in stopping the hit squad of suspected Lashkar-e-Tayyeba (Army of the Pure) terrorists, Ajmal Amir Kasab from Pakistani Punjab told his interrogators that they were aboard the MV Kuber 300 nautical miles (556 km) from Mumbai, off the coast of Jhakhau, Gujarat, when they were stopped.

They escaped by flashing Fisherman Identity Cards, issued by the Gujarat government. These cards were found on the Kuber, whose captain was killed after he guided the boat to Mumbai’s western shore.

Maharashtra too on December 1 announced it would issue smart cards to its fishermen.

The Gujarat Department of Fisheries of Gujarat issues these smart cards to fishermen of the state to help them prove their identity on the high seas and to get a mandatory customs okay needed before each fishing trip into international waters.

On the same day the 10 terrorists sailed along the coast of Gujarat enroute to Mumbai, a police station at the port town of Mandvi registered a case against “unidentified persons” for faking Fisherman Identity Cards.