Delhi’s terror came from across border

The scrutiny of the diaries and other documents found on them indicated that the two were in constant touch with Lashkar-e-Toiba’s Azam Cheema, the launching commander of Bhawalpur, Markaz in Pakistan.

The two have been identified as Abu Anas alias Dawood Ali, a resident of Kasoor and Ejaz Ahmed alias Deepak, a resident of Gujranwala.

The two men were shot during a joint operation of the Special Cell with intelligence agencies in the basement car parking of Ansal Plaza in south Delhi.

From their possession, the police found three diaries, a matrix showing codes and Rs 7,657. The diaries, senior police officers say, had entries in Urdu and also contained Pakistani telephone numbers. Officials say that a mobile phone was also found on their possession which showed that a number of calls had been made to satellite phones as well as international roaming mobile phones.

Sources say that the entries in the diaries indicated that there could be future strikes in Delhi and other metros. The threat perception of Deputy Prime Minister L K Advani has also increased.

According to sources, one of the entries in the diary says the ‘‘struggle for independence in Kashmir would continue.’’ Intelligence inputs on possible strikes in the Capital are still coming in, which is why a red alert was declared in the city and Delhi’s borders sealed off immediately after the encounter.

Raids were conducted in some parts of the city today to locate the sympathisers of the two militants. Teams have also been sent to Uttar Pradesh to locate the owners of the white Maruti car which the militants used.

‘‘We found a UP registeration number etched on the glass panes of the car. The number was UP 12B 9326. We have sent out teams to parts of UP to trace the owner of the car,’’ a senior police officer said. Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee today said the terrorist attack was ‘‘serious’’ and security forces have been put on a high alert, added PTI.

Complementing security forces, he said police were alert and that was the reason they were able to gun down the two terrorists. ‘‘Today terrorist strike can take place anywhere and anytime,’’ he cautioned while noting that the strike had taken place in the heart of the Capital.