Home, defence ministries blamed for armsdrop - The Telegraph

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The Committee on Government Assurances has come down heavily on the ministries of
home affairs, defence and civil aviation for their inability to prevent the
Purulia armsdrop in December 1995, despite having prior information of it.

In a report presented to the Lok Sabha, the committee has pointed out the failure
of all agencies to detect the aircraft which flew into Indian airspace, stopped at
airports and then came back to the country after two days.

While evaluating evidence of officials, the home secretary, Mr K. Padmanabhaiah,
admitted the Intelligence Bureau (IB) had tipped off the ministry on the armsdrop.
He said the location of the airdrop, Dhanbad, provided by the IB was wrong, but
the home ministry failed to react. "Instead, the home secretary alerted the
defence ministry, the Bihar government and then sent a routine letter to the West
Bengal government informing them of the intelligence report," the report said. It
was too late then.

The committee's chairman, Mr E. Ahmad, said Mr Padmanabhaiah had compounded his
costly lapse by not passing on the information to the Directorate General of Civil
Aviation (DGCA) and the ministry of civil aviation. "It is the DGCA which gives
planes the order to overtly India and therefore this agency should have been
informed," the report said. The committee has pulled up the home ministry "which
contributed in no small measure to the armsdropping."

The committee also takes a serious view of the happenings at Mumbai airport when
the An-26 was forcelanded. Mr Padmanabhaiah said the Air Force did not inform the
control tower, which in turn did not inform the police, contributing to the easy
escape of the prime culprit, Kim Davy. "It is disgraceful that Kim Davy could
escape without any difficulty. The home ministry could not make security
arrangements at Mumbai airport," the report said.

Even the defence ministry failed to react despite knowing about the armsdrop. It
not only failed to share information with the DGCA but refused to buy the argument
of the then defence secretary, Mr K. Nambiar, exonerating the Air Force.

The committee felt the airforce could have coordinated its efforts with the DGCA
and tried to track down the unscheduled flight. "It is a serious lapse on the part
of the defence," the committee said. What has irked the committee is AU Nambiar's
effort to downplay the seriousness of the armsdrop.

The civil aviation ministry has not been spared also. The committee found it
totally incomprehensible how the plane, loaded with arms, waited for four hours in
Varanasi and nobody checked it. The fact that it was bound for Yangon, as
explained by the crew, should have aroused the curiosity of airport authorities.
"Both the defence and home secretaries have stated the airport authorities at
Varanasi should have checked the plane. If they had done so, the armsdrop would
never have taken place," the panel said.

The committee felt the aircraft should not have been allowed to land in Chennai.
"The civil aviation authorities were callous in letting the aircraft fly wherever
it wanted without even the mandatory air-deck clearance."

The committee was aghast over the fact that the aircraft landed in Varanasi very
late, overflew Calcutta, saying it was bound for Yangon, but actually flew past
Purulia, It then came back to Calcutta, went to Madras and later Mumbai, almost
unhindered.

For the investigation in the case, the home secretary has informed the committee
that 14 persons were involved, of which seven were absconding. There is no
evidence they have left India. Since the investigations involve liaising with
foreign countries, the CBI and the home ministry have said it will take more time
to get at the truth.

"The CBI can cut down on the delay, caused by a bureaucratic approach, and the
matter can be brought to an early conclusion," the committee added.

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