The Surat police have launched an unprecedented hunt for a mysterious woman SIMI operative who they claim could be the pivot of a fresh conspiracy that intelligence agencies claim to have unearthed to strike Surat and Vadodara with serial bombs. Investigators from the Special Operations Group and the State Intelligence have joined the search operation that includes a sweeping set of measures: from checking on all tenants in Muslim-dominated areas to alerting phone-booth owners in case a woman makes an ISD call. Police claim the woman goes by the assumed name of Asha Vasawada and is believed to be between 25 and 35 years old. She is said to have been sent to Surat to recruit local youths for carrying out a series of blasts. Confirming this to The Indian Express,Additional Commissioner of Police (Range-1) Shamsher Singh said the hunt is based on specific intelligence inputs. Her given name is Asha but we suspect shes a Muslim woman with an assumed name, Singh said. Intelligence suggests she may be in contact with handlers across the border (in Pakistan) and that theres a clear plan to carry out blasts in Surat and Vadodara. We have checked out almost the entire Uttarayan and Amroli area but have not found her. The hunt is on, he added. Police sources said investigators have combed Amroli,Kathor,Sayan and Olpad as well sifting through records in local talati offices (village offices) for anyone with the name of Asha Vasawada just in case the name is real. Said Raja Desai,police inspector attached to the Special Operations Group (SOG) of Gujarat Police: We have alerted our informers in the entire city,particularly Muslim-dominated areas. We are screening and checking up on every tenant living in a rented apartment or home in every area. Telephone-booth owners have been alerted to keep a watch on all women who make ISD calls or whose movements are found suspicious. Autorickshaw drivers have been told to contact police if they find any suspicious woman. We are trying everything possible. The Vadodara police too have begun the hunt for her. Theres speculation that shes from Raipur in Chhattisgarh. Said Raipur SP Amit Kumar: If we are informed she is here and wanted, we will certainly find her.
