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This is an archive article published on February 21, 2003

The return of the wanted

There is an anniversary here that the Dubai authorities may not have been aware of when they despatched Iqbal Shaikh Kaskar and Ejaz Pathan ...

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There is an anniversary here that the Dubai authorities may not have been aware of when they despatched Iqbal Shaikh Kaskar and Ejaz Pathan back home to Mumbai on Wednesday. The tenth anniversary of the Bombay blasts will soon be upon us and the country has still to come to terms with that tragic event. The connections between these two fugitives and that horrendous event will, of course, have to be established through the due process of law but there is enough evidence to suggest that their inputs could prove invaluable in piecing together the complex jigsaw puzzle that the Bombay blasts constitute. The CBI case, which began on June 30, 1995, had chargesheeted 195 people, of whom 44 were absconding. Among them was Pathan, believed to have masterminded the smuggling into the country of assault rifles before that fateful March day. As for Iqbal Kaskar, apart from being charged with murder and other serious offences, he is Dawood Ibrahim’s brother and would presumably have been privy to many of the nefarious goings-on within the D-Company.

Apart from what the Dubai deportations can do in terms of throwing fresh light on past events, they hold great significance for India’s battle against the mafia-terrorist network, which has received both overt and covert support from Pakistan. This year has proved especially fortunate in this regard, what with the arrest of Shakil Mursalim Shaikh, believed to have once been a key associate of Dawood Ibrahim, and the deportation of Imran Khan and Mohammed Altaf, both of whom were wanted in the Ghatkopar blast of last December. Of course, these breakthroughs would not have been possible without the active cooperation New Delhi has been receiving from the UAE authorities over the past several months. But there are two further developments that have helped. First, the endemic rivalries and dissensions within the D-Company itself. Second, the international pressure on all criminal-terrorist groups after 9/11. If the Portuguese government has finally been persuaded to hand over Abu Salem to India, as the minister of state for external affairs has revealed, it is certainly a consequence of such pressure.

This then is the time for India to do its homework and systematically follow up on every lead it may have on individuals and groups that have committed serious crimes in this country and fled to safe havens abroad, or who continue to perpetrate mayhem by remote control. It must also ensure that those deemed guilty by the courts are quickly brought to book. Such a resolve would be the best tribute the nation can pay to the 257 people who lost their lives on that horrific Friday in Mumbai, ten years ago.

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