Author: Correspondent
Publication: Rediff.com
Date: November 5, 2009
URL: http://news.rediff.com/special/2009/nov/05/local-involvement-in-2611-needs-attention-says-b-raman.htm
India should not have high expectations from
Pakistan in investigating and prosecuting the 26/11 case," says rediff.com
columnist and renowned expert on terrorism Bahukutumbi Raman.
His new book Mumbai 26/11: A Day of Infamy
has been released a couple of weeks before the first anniversary of the Mumbai
terror attacks.
When asked if some Indian critics have been
expecting unpractical results from Pakistan, Raman said, "In view of
domestic problems that Pakistan is facing we should see what is possible and
what is not possible for Pakistan in tackling the 26/11 case."
"My reading is that President Asif Ali
Zardari and Interior Minister Rehman Malik would want to cooperate more with
India, firstly, because they are worried by the growing menace of the Punjabi
Taliban, of which the Lashkar-e-Tayiba (blamed for the 26/11 attacks) is a
part and, secondly, because they are sensitive to US concerns," he said.
"But Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani,
Army Chief General Ashfaq Pervez Kayani and Inter Services Intelligence chief
Major General Ahmad Shuja Pasha are not in favour of cooperating with India.
They do not view the menace of the Punjabi Taliban with the same seriousness
as Zardari. Zardari is politically weak. He would have been eased out by now
by Kayani and Gilani, but for the fact that he enjoys the strong backing of
the US. In view of this scenario, we should not have high expectations from
Pakistan," he added.
Raman says his new book concentrates on "a
professional analysis to highlight the new aspects of terrorism and our sins
of commission and omission in order to draw lessons for the future. Smart
counter-terrorism is the need of the hour. The terrorists are becoming more
and more smart. The counter-terrorism agencies should outsmart them. It analyses
the importance of smart counter-terrorism."
Raman highlights that happenings in Pakistan
have a certain impact on India's security as well.
While explaining the situation in Pakistan
and its impact on India's security, Raman said, "The Pakistan army is
unlikely to be able to retrieve the lost ground in the Federally Administered
Tribal Areas. Its control over Peshawar, the capital of the North West Frontier
Province, is weakening. It has been unwilling to devote adequate attention
to action against the Punjabi Taliban. The situation in Pakistani Punjab --
particularly in the southern districts of Multan, Bahawalpur and Dera Ghazi
Khan -- should be worrying for India. We should start brain-storming now as
to the likely additional threats to India if these districts in descend into
a Peshawar-like situation. We should involve the US also in this scenario-anticipation
exercise."
Raman forcefully argues that "the action
against Pakistan is important to deal with terrorism emanating from Pakistani
territory, but that alone would not be adequate. Action against Pakistan is
only one dimension of what should be our counter-terrorism doctrine. There
are many other dimensions including our own political and professional inadequacies."
His book tries to highlight the various kinds
of terrorism that India is facing today.
"We face three kinds of terrorism --
the indigenous jihadi terrorism of the Indian Mujahideen and Students Islamic
Movement of India kind, the Pakistani jihadi terrorism of the Lashkar and
Al Qaeda kind and the indigenous Maoist variety," explains Raman.
The indigenous jihadi and Maoist terrorism
are still the old kinds of terrorism who do not use modern innovations in
science and technology and tactics much.
Raman has argued that "the Pakistani
jihadi terrorism is new terrorism using these innovations and tactics as we
saw in Mumbai. The Pakistani terrorism has to be firmly countered by strengthening
and modernising our counter-terrorism capabilities. The indigenous jihadi
and Maoist terrorism require a different approach with a nuanced mix of the
political, economic, social and law and order aspects."
Raman, a retired Indian Police Service officer
who served the Research and Analysis Wing, India's external agency for more
than three decades, advocates a softer approach for the home-grown variety
of rebels.
He told rediff.com, "We cannot treat
the Indian Mujahideen and SIMI in the same way as we treat the Lashkar and
other Pakistani organisations or we would treat Al Qaeda if it extends its
activities to our territory. There is no copy book on terrorism/insurgencies
which we can apply uniformly to all terrorist and insurgent groups. Indigenous
and foreign groups require different approaches."
When asked about his opinion on the investigations
carried out by the Indian police of the 26/11 attacks, he said, "The
investigation has been done in a professional and competent manner, but there
are gaps in the investigation. The investigation has been thorough from the
point of view of prosecution, but not from that of the prevention of future
strikes."
"Apart from what Ajmal Kasab (the lone
terrorist arrested in the attacks) has told us during his interrogation,"
Raman added, "we do not appear to have found out anything extra, which
could help us in preventing future terrorist strikes. The local angle needed
greater attention."
"The US input was very significant in
respect of technical intelligence, but we should not undervalue the professional
efforts put in by the Mumbai police, which were considerable. This was a case
of close Indo-US mutual cooperation in investigating an important terrorist
attack."
While commenting on the sensitive issue of
local involvement in the Mumbai attacks, Raman said, "I do feel even
today that the local angle has not received the attention it deserved. I find
it difficult to accept that only two Indians were involved. There has been
very strong evidence of their involvement, but the possible involvement of
others should be looked into."
When asked why there has not been a major
terrorists attack by Islamic groups in the last one year, he said, "The
activities of the Indian Mujahideen and SIMI have received a major setback
as a result of the vigorous action taken by the police of Jaipur, Bengaluru,
Ahmedabad, Delhi and Mumbai and the Intelligence Bureau. They are lying low
for the time being trying to re-organise their pan-Indian presence and capabilities.
Complacency would be unwise."
Raman has some words of praise for the Manmohan
Singh government.
"I agree that the Manmohan Singh government
acted vigorously in capacity-building after 26/11," he said. "Home
Minister P Chidambaram deserves praise for this. But its approach to Maoist
terrorism continues to be confused. He finds it difficult to resist the temptation
to play politics when it comes to dealing with Maoist terrorism. One also
feels uncomfortable with his rhetoric even in respect of terrorism from Pakistan.
If the rhetoric is ultimately not followed up by action, the credibility of
the government could be weakened."
It is no surprise that Raman, who breathes
and lives with the issues connected to India's neighbours, mainly Pakistan,
has written this book.
When Pakistani editor and rediff.com columnist
Hamid Mir met Raman, he told him while commenting on his prolific writings
on Pakistan, "You know General Pervez Musharraf more than Musharraf knows
himself."
The book was released by Lancers Publications
last week
