Tahawwur Rana, one of the key conspirators and masterminds of the 26/11 Mumbai terror attacks, has finally been extradited.
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00:01Game over for 26-11 plotter.
00:08The Howard Rana to be in NIA custody.
00:17Next, the Rana to stand trial for terror.
00:25Bigger anti-India conspiracy unravels.
00:30India gets the Howard Rana.
00:39Hello and welcome to an India Today special broadcast.
00:42I am Gaurav Sawant.
00:43The stage is set for Pakistani-Canadian citizen,
00:49Tahawar Hussain Rana,
00:51formerly of the Pakistan Army,
00:53to be sent to India.
00:54He's being brought to India.
00:55He'll be here anytime now.
00:57And there are several missing links in the 26-11 Mumbai terror attacks case.
01:01Those missing links will be now complete.
01:05Those gaps that are there in the investigation.
01:08The role of the Pakistani state and quasi-state elements.
01:12The role of Hafiz Mohammed Said.
01:14The role of a certain major Iqbal.
01:16There are several others.
01:17The then DGISI.
01:19The then Pakistan Army Chief.
01:21And the preparations.
01:22Remember, not many people know that Tahawar Hussain Rana was one of the key plotters of 26-11 Mumbai terror attacks.
01:30He was the one who was running David Coleman Headley.
01:33He was the one who set up that company in Mumbai.
01:36And the second aspect.
01:37The sleeper cells within the country.
01:39Who are those Indians who were helping these Pakistanis and not just in Mumbai.
01:44He had wrecked places like Kochi, Pushkar.
01:48He travelled to Rajasthan.
01:49He travelled to Haridwar, Uttar Pradesh.
01:52He travelled to Hapur.
01:53Why was he travelling to Hapur?
01:55Why was he travelling to Agra?
01:56We'll get, we'll seek answers to all these questions.
01:58I'm Gaurav Samant as always.
02:00Let's get started with the headlines at 5.
02:03Stage set for Tahawar Hussain Rana's trial in Delhi.
02:10NIA court receives 26-11 case files for Rana trial.
02:14Right after landing in Delhi, Rana would be officially arrested by the National Investigation Agency
02:20and will be taken to the NIA headquarters in an armoured personal carrier.
02:26Megascoop on NIA's Rana terror probe.
02:33Lens on Hindu terror bogey by the Lashkar-e-Taiba death squad.
02:38The 10 Pakistani terrorists wore a kalawa.
02:42The sacred thread had been got from Siddhi Vinaik temple
02:45and had fake identity cards with Hindu names.
02:49Maharashtra terror politics escalates.
02:55Sharath Pawar's NCP seeks fair trial for Rana.
02:59Congress ally says probe must be fair within Indian law.
03:03Piyush Goyal says this government does not feed biryani to terrorists.
03:13Survivors who escaped Lashkar death squad recount tales of absolute horror.
03:18Those who live to tell the tale seek death sentence for Rana.
03:28In other news, Donald Trump bowls another tariff googly.
03:3190 day pause on reciprocal tariffs for 75 countries but no relief for China
03:36where tariffs have been hiked by 125%.
03:48Our top focus story on this India Today special broadcast is
04:01Tahavar Hussain Rana being brought to India
04:05and it's extremely crucial because this terrorist plotter,
04:08a deserter of the Pakistan army.
04:10He was a captain in Pakistan army.
04:12He was a doctor, a medical doctor by profession.
04:15He is a deserter. He ran away from Pakistan, set base in Canada.
04:19But that is where he became Lashkar-e-Taiba sleeper cell in Canada.
04:23Along with David Coleman Hidley who was a Lashkar-e-Taiba sleeper cell in the United States of America.
04:28They were given details of the Lashkar-e-Taiba and Pakistan ISI plot to bleed India.
04:33And they carried out reconnaissance.
04:35They wrecked several locations in Mumbai but it wasn't restricted just to Mumbai.
04:4026-11 was just part, one part of their massive plan to bleed India through a thousand cuts.
04:47Tahavar Hussain Rana along with his wife.
04:49So he brought his wife and they went to Kochi.
04:52They carried out reconnaissance in Kochi.
04:54Remember, Kochi is the southern naval command.
04:57It also has a shipyard.
04:58It is a very vital city.
05:00That is where they carried out reconnaissance and recruited some people.
05:03He travelled to Harpur.
05:05Why would he travel to Harpur?
05:07And we will seek answers to that.
05:09Remember, there are other terrorists who have been caught in Harpur before.
05:11He travelled to Agra.
05:13Now the aim was to target Jewish centres in all these cities including in Agra
05:19where several foreign tourists come.
05:22He also travelled to Ahmedabad in Gujarat.
05:25There are several cities these terrorists and their handlers made them travel.
05:30They planned to bleed India through a thousand cuts.
05:32Now that he has been brought to India, there are many many details that will emerge.
05:36We get you more in this report.
05:38Tahavur Rana, one of the 2611 masterminds, hauled back to India.
05:48Nearly 16 years after his arrest over his role in the terror attack that shook the nation,
05:53Tahavur Rana will face trial in India for the lives lost in one of the deadliest terror strikes to hit the country.
06:01The NIA will question the terrorist inside a high security interrogation cell at the agency headquarters in Delhi.
06:09He will be confronted with proof of his role in the Mumbai terror attacks.
06:13Rana will also be interrogated on Pakistan's role, his multiple trips to India and the ISI Lashkar-e-Taiba links.
06:21Pakistan has also been formally asked to help in India's investigation.
06:25Only 12 members of the NIA have access to the terrorist.
06:31They include DG Sadanand Date, IG Ashish Batra and DIG Jaya Roy.
06:37Anyone else will have to get a permit first.
06:40Sources say Tahavur Rana will be confronted with voice samples recorded during the 2611 attacks
06:46and pictures, videos, emails will be used as evidence of his key role.
06:51Two jails are being prepped to keep the 2611 mastermind.
06:58In Delhi's Tihar Jail, a heavily fortified prison cell is waiting for Tahavur Rana.
07:04At the NIA headquarters, a temporary holding cell is ready to keep the terrorist while interrogation continues.
07:11And in Mumbai, Arthur Road Jail's barrack number 12, Ajmal Kasab's old cell before he was hung to death,
07:18is also prepared to house Tahavur Rana for the Mumbai Crime Branch probe.
07:24Over 160 lives were lost in the 2008 Mumbai terror attacks.
07:29Rana's trial will be one more step in the mission to give justice to the victims and survivors of 2611.
07:36Bureau Report, India Today.
07:39So, Tahavur Rana will formally be arrested by the National Investigation Agency and then he would be taken to the NIA headquarters.
07:59There would be a medical examination that will be carried out to know about his medical condition as soon as NIA takes him in its custody.
08:08That is standard operating procedure.
08:10If required, he would be taken to a hospital or doctors would be present for his medical examination.
08:17Because, remember, he did not want to be handed over to India.
08:20Now, the terrorist who, according to the Federal Bureau of Investigation, FBI probe, he was celebrating 2611 Mumbai terror attacks.
08:30When 166 people were being massacred, he was celebrating.
08:35He was watching it on television in Chicago.
08:38He had already left India.
08:39Remember, he had left India on the 21st of November 2008 and 26th of November, the 10 Pakistani terrorists struck.
08:47Back in Chicago, he was watching it on television and he was celebrating.
08:52And he said, all the 10 gentlemen, those 10 Pakistani terrorists, all the 10 gentlemen, he said, deserve Pakistan's highest military award.
09:03That is how he celebrated with a drink in his hand.
09:07And this man was crying before he was being handed over to Indian agencies.
09:12He pleaded before the Supreme Court in the United States of America saying he is a Muslim of Pakistani origin.
09:19He is an ex-armi captain and sending him to India is like signing his death warrant.
09:24So, he knew the reality.
09:26He knew the reality, but this is how he was behaving.
09:29I have Shivani Sharma joining me from the NIA headquarters.
09:32I have Amit Bharadwaj standing by at the Palam Technical Area in Delhi.
09:36I have Nalini Sharma who joins me from the NIA court because he is to be produced in court in 24 hours after being in NIA custody.
09:42And Shivani, I want to begin by asking you, I believe NIA has its entire plan ready.
09:50And the chief of NIA Shivani, Sadanan Date, was the additional commissioner of Mumbai police during 26-11.
09:57He braved bullets.
09:59He braved bullets at the Kama hospital.
10:02He was, terrorists were firing at him.
10:04He was firing back.
10:05He was saving lives of patients at that hospital and nurses and their kin.
10:11He knows everything about this case inside out.
10:14He had investigated this case in the Mumbai police.
10:16Now, he heads NIA.
10:18Tell us how NIA intends to proceed with Tahver Hussain Rana.
10:21Gaurav, as you were rightly saying that Tahver Hussain Rana, who was the conspirator of this attack, was celebrating in America then.
10:32But now it's turn of India to celebrate.
10:35The agencies are all set for his procedure to begin here, the investigation to begin here.
10:40And the NIA chief has been here in the meetings at the NIA headquarters.
10:45Everything is set for Tahver Hussain Rana's coming here when the process will begin.
10:52And he'll be shortly landing from where he'll be brought to NIA headquarters in a special secure convoy of the armoured vehicles and the SWAT team, the commandos of the Delhi police.
11:03And the NIA headquarters have also been turned into a fortress.
11:07You see the road outside has been closed for normal traffic.
11:11There are barricades.
11:12There are additional forces because we have to keep Tahver Hussain Rana safe and secure while the investigations go on.
11:18And once he lands here, the medical will happen.
11:21He'll be formally placed under arrest by the NIA.
11:24NIA would like to produce him today itself, but there's just a possibility because as the time is passing by,
11:32there can be other steps also here, Gaurav.
11:37Because, you know, he has to be produced before the court after 24 hours of his arrest.
11:42So, if the arrest happens today, late in the evening, then he can be produced later also.
11:49Stay with me, Nalini, you've cracked this case with the prosecutors and the prosecutors have their entire case laid out.
11:58But there are many gaps in this case.
12:00So, one, for the benefit of our younger viewers who may not have a major recall of what happened during 26-11 and the time preceding,
12:08what was Tahver Hussain Rana's role? What is the evidence that India has on him?
12:17Like we've been telling our viewers, Tahver Rana had played a very crucial role when it came to the planning and the exit of 26-11 attacks.
12:25Because without the health that was provided...
12:31Give me a moment as I re-establish this link with Nalini, who's standing by at the NIA court.
12:36Akshita Nand Gopal also joins us from the NIA headquarters in Delhi.
12:41And Akshita, you've been speaking not just to your sources and the police, but also to the survivors of 26-11.
12:48And they are very clear, do not feed biryani to terrorists like it was done with Ajmal Amir Kassab.
12:55And like the way we've been treating terrorists in the past.
12:58India has a long history of feeding biryani to terrorists from Masgul to Kassab.
13:03Enough of that. They want him to be tried and hanged, perhaps with daily hearings, Akshita.
13:12Absolutely, Gaurav. They're pushing for a speedy trial.
13:15Look, they waited 17 years for this moment.
13:1817 years and now finally Tahver Hussain Rana will be brought to India.
13:22And now that that particular, you know, part of the complication with regards to his extradition is taken care of,
13:28they want things to move quickly.
13:30I'm here at the NIA office.
13:31Quickly, let me show you around Gaurav.
13:33Because this entire area, and I've just arrived here.
13:35So this entire area has been completely closed off.
13:38Not a single vehicle is allowed in this stretch, which is why you see the entire road,
13:42otherwise bustling, completely empty right now.
13:45So this entire area, this security blanket for me to enter, I had to repeatedly show my media ID card to be even allowed to this point,
13:53very close to the NIA headquarters.
13:55So the area completely cordoned off, nobody being allowed in.
13:59And only if you've got the requisite IDs are you allowed this close to the NIA headquarters as I'm standing right now.
14:05But you're right in highlighting that, you know, the 2611 survivors, who I spoke to this morning, they said very clearly, never forgive, never forget.
14:12And some of them, of course, have very publicly said that we want Tahver Hussain Rana to meet the same fate as Ajmal Kassab.
14:18We want a hanging to take place for his role in the 2611 attacks.
14:22It's been delayed by 17 years, but nobody's forgotten, Gaurav, whether, you know, you as a journalist covering 2611 or me much before I was a journalist when 2611 happened.
14:32Those memories are still fresh of how the terror attack played out because it's the worst, the most dastardly terror attack on Indian soil so far.
14:40So none of us have ever forgotten the toll it's had on India.
14:44The fact that we lost 166 lives, so 17 years later, yes, delayed, but most definitely at this point, we are hoping the justice won't be denied.
14:53And key to that is to ensure a speedy trial.
14:55Now, once Tahver Hussain Rana lands here at the Palam Technical Airport, he's going to be brought in a convoy with a bulletproof vehicle, mind you, to ensure adequate security.
15:04He'll be brought to the NIA headquarters here.
15:06We understand that here there is, and I'm sure you know about these, there are holding cells essentially.
15:12Yes.
15:14And there'll be maximum security. Only a handful of officers will be allowed into one of these cells, which have been reserved and kept aside for Tahver Hussain Rana.
15:20The entire area right now, sanitized.
15:22Okay, let me quickly bring in Amit Bharadwaj also, who joins us on this broadcast.
15:26Sakshita, stay with me.
15:28Amit, at the airport, we are told it could happen anytime.
15:32Of course, the exact timing is being kept a closely guarded secret.
15:36Because, like during 2611, there were sleeper cells then, there are apprehensions, there could be sleeper cells now.
15:42So, security perhaps prime concern to ensure he's brought to court, tried in court, and if convicted, hanged by court.
15:52All right, Gaurav, you know, security remains to be the top priority for the agencies that are on the task as far as Tahver Hussain Rana's transportation is concerned.
16:05That is why we will not get the exact details of his landing, when that happened, unless the NIA issues the formal statement.
16:13But certainly, what we are given to understand through our sources, what the process is going to be.
16:18Let's again break it down for our viewers who might have just joined this evening.
16:23Is that the moment Tahver Hussain Rana lands on the Indian soil, despite the fact that he is being brought back to India by the NIA's team, the NIA will formally put him under arrest on the Indian soil.
16:37Because that's what the, that is what is required as per the Indian law.
16:41After that, you know, in the meantime, paperwork needs to be done, because this is not a regular arrest that you might be doing on the Indian soil.
16:49Rather, this is a case of extradition, for which India has fought a long legal battle, a diplomatic, you know, exchange as well with the United States.
16:58And that is why the complete paperwork needs to be done as well, so that we do not end up leaving any loophole in this particular case.
17:05And we want a watertight case to be built.
17:08So, once this process is over, the phase two and the most crucial phase of the entire operation for the day will begin.
17:16That is the transportation.
17:18The Niaik Suraksha Vahini, a special group of the Delhi police, wing of the Delhi police has been given the task of transporting Tahavur Rana from the airport facility to the NIA's facility,
17:30whether it be the NIA headquarters or some other facility, you know, if at all there are changes in the plan.
17:36This particular wing of the Delhi police will be carrying him in an armored vehicle, which will be guarded by the SWAT commandos as well as the CAPF personnel.
17:46The Niaik Suraksha Vahini, big, big, big story coming in.
17:48Rana, his interrogation is set to nail ISI's role in 2611 and Pakistan is panicking already.
17:56Cornered Pakistan says it has nothing to do with Tahavur Hussain Rana.
18:02Pakistan is saying Tahavur Hussain Rana is no longer a Pakistani citizen.
18:08He's a Canadian citizen.
18:09He may be of Pakistani origin, but he's a Canadian citizen and Pakistan has nothing to do with this case.
18:17Rana, remember, was a captain in Pakistan Army.
18:21He was a doctor in Pakistan.
18:23He, of course, was a deserter, but many know that the Pakistan ISI uses such elements.
18:31It plants them in sensitive countries, countries like Canada in the United States of America, Britain or in other parts of Europe.
18:39They've done that in the past and use them as sleeper cells.
18:43Tahavur Hussain Rana was a Lashkar-e-Taiba sleeper cell in Canada.
18:46David Coleman Headley was a Lashkar-e-Taiba sleeper cell in the United States.
18:50Pakistan is now trying to wash its hands off.
18:54Listen in.
19:00Tahavur Hussain Rana issue, we have conveyed our position regarding his Canadian nationality.
19:05And as far as our record indicates, he did not even apply for renewal of his Pakistani origin documents for the last two decades.
19:16I reiterate position.
19:17We will give further updates in due course.
19:21So, Pakistan is now trying to wash its hands off, but can Pakistan do that?
19:25I have a fine panel, a very fine panel of experts joining me on this special broadcast.
19:30I have PK Jain, additional DGP, former additional DGP of Special Operations, Maharashtra Police joining me on this show.
19:37I have Ratan Sharda joining me on this show.
19:39Sushant Sareen is senior fellow at the Observer Research Foundation.
19:42He joins me on this broadcast.
19:43And let me begin by asking you, Mr. Jain, how crucial in your appreciation will the interrogation of Tahavur Hussain Rana be?
19:52Because right now, Pakistan says he is not ours.
19:54Whatever he may have done has nothing to do with Pakistan.
19:57Or what's to that effect, sir?
19:59Namaskar, thank you very much for having me here.
20:03See, what else do you expect from Pakistan?
20:05Has Pakistan ever accepted any responsibility or any moral responsibility for their actions which they have been doing against the Indian nation for decades, ever since 1947 for that matter?
20:18So, expecting Pakistan to accept its misdeeds, I'm not seeing it happening at all.
20:27We have got Dawd Ibrahim, we have got N number of people.
20:31The entire conspiracy was exposed and even has gone through the judicial scrutiny system of India.
20:39And Kassab was convicted and hanged.
20:43Everything has been proved beyond doubt.
20:45Now, whatever evidence we kept before the US to show that Tahavur Hussain Rana and David Coleman Headley were involved in this entire conspiracy and attack on India in which number of foreign nations were also killed.
20:59It has been shown that's why probably the sex tradition has taken place in addition to whatever is the anatomy between, you know, between Mr. Modi and the US president.
21:09Yes.
21:10So, all those things are responsible, but we have given a good dozier to US.
21:13We have given very many doziers to Pakistan.
21:16In fact, Pakistan has used those doziers to punish those people from whom they suspected the information leaked.
21:23So, you don't expect anything from Pakistan at all.
21:25Now, coming to Tahavur Hussain Rana, the man is going to be a goldmine of information for the Indian intelligence agencies.
21:31It is not that the case is now 17 years old.
21:35It is a question of that the person was very thickly networked into the ISI, into the government of Pakistan, and also Lashkar-e-Taiba.
21:44So, see, all these three agencies are actively, even today, pursuing a line where they want to damage this country in a low-cost warfare.
21:56That is sending terrorists across the line of the country.
21:58Explain, that's a very important thing you've said before I bring in Sushant Sareen and Ratan Sharda.
22:03You said he was thickly networked in ISI and LET.
22:07How can we, you know, conclude that on the basis of what investigation in your appreciation, sir?
22:13See, it is like this. He has been found guilty even in the US.
22:18He was convicted there.
22:20And then he was convicted for another offense which when they were trying to cause some terrorist activities in Denmark.
22:26So, he has a history to himself.
22:28Now, you know, the very fact that on the basis of the information that the government of India has been able to furnish to the courts in the US, as well as the US administration, that finally we are seeing the day when this man has been brought to India.
22:42There is a lot of evidence against him. There are 279 or 280 calls between David Coleman and this fellow when this entire attack was taking place and prior to that.
22:51Yes.
22:52So, he was in touch with David Coleman who came and wrecked all the places and drafted a plan as to how the taxes would come, land in Mumbai, go to which all places.
23:05I mean, they did not fumble. They straight went to Leopold Cafe, they straight went to Taj Hotel, they straight went to, you know, the other two places, VT Station as well as Hotel Oberoi.
23:15So, the entire thing was chalked out in detail. The logistic support of their coming to Mumbai and David Coleman coming to Mumbai, he is getting a fake passport in the sense that with forced credentials or with false credentials.
23:30That was all, all these things were managed by him. And today to Pakistan to say and deny that for two decades he has not been in touch with Pakistan, he is not renewed.
23:38It is all a sham. You have already said it in your, you very rightly pointed out that Pakistan, there is always an element, they will keep an element of deniability.
23:47In all such cases where you have people operating like this, the element of deniability is always maintained by the governments and the intelligence agencies.
23:54But that is the big challenge now, Sushant Sarin. Sir, you have raised a very pertinent point and Sushant Sarin, that is the challenge to break through that deniability of Pakistani deep state and government because they are very brazen about it.
24:07I think they think India is so weak that they are brazen enough for Major Iqbal to be so openly in touch with Tahavar Hussain Rana and David Coleman Headley and Hafiz Saeed to meet David Headley knowing that he is a double agent with the Americans.
24:23So, Sushant Sarin, one, what do you make of the Pakistani foreign office denial and the fact that this Rana is being now extradited to India?
24:34But I think the denial was only to be expected. In fact, last night also I told you that this was one of my first talking points that they are going to blankly deny and they will make that same excuse that he is no longer a Pakistani national, he is a Canadian national.
24:48Basically, in a manner of speaking, throwing the Canadians under the bus, which I have no problems with. My only problem is with the Pakistani denials, but then Pakistan is such a shameless country that I don't expect anything better from them.
25:00You know, all that crocodile tears that all that third-grade so-called liberals like this city and the Mears and what have you will say about what has happened on 2611.
25:11I don't buy that at all, right? They are all cut from the same clock, number one. Number two, please remember that we also made a mistake as 2611 was happening.
25:23On the very next day, the statement which was coming out from the Indian side officials was that we suspect non-state actors from Pakistan.
25:34Now, it is inconceivable that an attack of this magnitude could have been mounted by so-called non-state actors.
25:41Number one, Gaurav, let's be clear. There are no non-state actors.
25:45All of these so-called non-state actors are only created to give some degree of deniability to the state.
25:52Remember also that the then army chief had been the ISI chief, Ashwaq Kiani, at the time this plot was hatched.
26:01And they used a journalist by the name of Salim Shahzad whom the ISI later bumped off.
26:07They used that guy to come out with a story that, you know, this plan had been prepared, but it was only on the drawing board.
26:14And that plan had been stolen by Al-Qaeda and the LAT guys, and they put it into operation.
26:21And these Pakistani ISI guys were simply sucking lollipops and did not know what the hell happened.
26:27But we have evidence that there were serving ISI officers involved.
26:32There were ISI bases which were used along the coast of Sindh to train some of these guys.
26:37All of that information is available.
26:39So there is no real deniability, despite a third-rate retired air marshal like Shahzad Chaudhary writing articles that, you know,
26:47we still have doubts about what happened on 2611 or that bigoted fellow Abdul Basit, you know, who keeps coming and talking about,
26:55we don't know what happened on 2611.
26:57Everybody knows what happened.
26:59That's the second part.
27:00The third part of it is that they tried to create this charade.
27:03One was, of course, that, you know, the strings, the kalawa strings that they were wearing.
27:08And Gaurav, if you go back, you check out the old footage from the Pakistani television of those days.
27:14The Pakistani first two or three days when identification had not been done of these terrorists,
27:19the Pakistanis were saying, well, this, you know, kalawa is a Hindu thing.
27:24This has been made by, you know, this probably a Hindu terror organization.
27:28That was one.
27:29Secondly, there is a third-rate journalist, Talat Hussain.
27:32He started interviewing this third-rate lawyer who claimed Kassab was actually a nice guy working in Nepal.
27:40And he had been kidnapped by Ra to bring him to India so that they can plant him out here.
27:46That was the second.
27:47The third thing these fellows did was that when that conversation was going on between Sajid Mir and some of these terrorists in the Habad house,
27:57they were training these guys to speak in an Indian accent.
28:02But a Punjabi can't speak in an Indian accent to save his life, especially a Pakistani.
28:06By the way, we have those audio clips if it's legally permitted.
28:09And I've done a full show on that audio tip, on that audio conversation that was happening in that control room in Karachi and Mumbai.
28:17You know, when the terrorists, when they saw helicopters coming in and NSG dropping down on that Habad house, they panicked.
28:26So, they called Pakistan, we're about to be killed.
28:30And they said, X banao.
28:31X banao ke fire karo.
28:32I remember that.
28:33I was there.
28:34I was there covering that Habad house the very next morning.
28:39But stay with me.
28:40You've raised a very pertinent point.
28:41For now, we need a half a minute.
28:43And at that point of time, what they tried to initially pretend is that these are Indian Mujahideen terrorists.
28:48Right?
28:49Yes.
28:49And then later on, they decided, okay, forget the Indian Mujahideen thing.
28:53Let's try and give it a Hindu angle.
28:55And adding to that Hindu angle thing, they had their own people out here who were holding press conferences and writing books, talking about RSS ki saazesh.
29:06You know, since you've mentioned this, let's talk about this in greater detail.
29:11Politicians talking about it.
29:13So, they had their own people batting for them in India.
29:16So, why do you need terrorists from Pakistan when you have traitors from India, you know, holding the Pakistani line and spreading it out here, the Pakistani narrative?
29:26That is what happened on 26-11.
29:28That's a very serious point you make.
29:31I have Mr. Jain with me.
29:32I have Ratan Sharda with me.
29:33And let's talk about this in greater detail since you've raised it, Sushant Sareen, for the benefit of our viewers and especially for the benefit of our younger viewers.
29:41It's been 17 years since 26-11.
29:43So, you must hear this.
29:45Tahavar Hussain Rana's interrogation is expected to shed light on terror sleeper cells in India.
29:52Interrogators are also expected to learn more about this bogey, this bogey of Hindu terror that was systematically plotted and spread through these 10 Pakistani terrorists who attacked Mumbai during 26-11.
30:05The year was 2008.
30:07Now, what was this bogey of Hindu terror?
30:10Probe reveals how David Coleman Headley brought Kalawa.
30:14You understand, Kalawa, it's that sacred thread we wear.
30:18Now, David Coleman Headley bought Kalawa or that sacred thread from Siddhi Vinayak Temple in Mumbai.
30:24The probe revealed how Pakistan tried to palm off 26-11 as a Hindu terror attack.
30:30David Headley revealed that Hindu terror camouflage was to be given to this terror attack.
30:37So, what did investigators find out?
30:38That Ajmal Amir Kassab and nine other terrorists who came with him all carried fake identity cards, all with Hindu names.
30:48So, former NIA Inspector General Loknath Behra, he also revealed Rana's terror plan.
30:54The probe officer in 26-11 case revealed how Rana carried out a recce, not just in Mumbai or Kochi, but he also wanted communal violence in India.
31:06That was Pakistan's evil plan.
31:07So, he travelled to the Pushkar Mela in Rajasthan and he thought a terror attack could be carried out in Pushkar.
31:14He then travelled to Haridwar.
31:16Why would he travel to Haridwar?
31:19Because according to Loknath Behra in his investigations and he was IG NIA at that time, their plan was to target the Kumbh Mela.
31:27They also travelled to Kochi.
31:29Rana travelled to Kochi with his wife.
31:32Why?
31:32They wanted to set up an office there.
31:34Kochi is the Southern Naval Command.
31:36Kochi also has a shipyard.
31:37It has strategic vital assets and vital points of the Indian Armed Forces.
31:41They wanted to carry out recce.
31:42So, they hired people there.
31:44Who were the people who were hired?
31:45There are many, many questions that need to be answered.
31:48I spoke to Loknath Behra just a short while back.
31:50Listen in.
31:51How crucial is Tahavur Hussain Rana being brought to India for interrogation in your appreciation, sir?
32:00What are we likely to find out?
32:03See, actually he is a very, very key player.
32:06Because if you remember, in 2011, we actually in the National Investigation Special Court, we charged him in Delhi.
32:16For the larger conspiracy behind Mumbai attack.
32:20Yes.
32:21See, he is coming, we'll be actually filling some of the missing links and the blanks in this particular place.
32:29I personally feel that maybe some other names may crop up.
32:34Very interesting.
32:36Names like, names of people like, names in India or names in Pakistan?
32:40Both.
32:42I mean, because if you see, Rana used to travel quite a bit.
32:47He even came to Cochin.
32:48Yes.
32:49So, you don't know actually, by that time, we had never gotten access to Rana to interrogate, unlike Headley.
32:56So, many of the things will be brought out by our very competent agencies like NIA and others and even Mumbai police.
33:05So, I will not be surprised that some new names also come up.
33:09You had investigated this case very extensively, including Tahavar Hussain Rana's visit to Cochin.
33:16What was his interest in Cochin?
33:18What did he want to bomb there?
33:21See, Cochin is a very strategic place.
33:23We were a little worried about, actually, see it as Southern Naval Command, the CPR, all strategic installations are here.
33:30So, we were worried and he actually did interview in a hotel, which is very near to the waterfront.
33:36So, that time, so, we were, but we never knew, because we never knew, actually, we did not get chance to speak to him.
33:46Now, there is a chance that he, probably this part, Headley also did not say us.
33:51So, whether he had wrecked any place in Cochin.
33:55So, that can be actually extracted from him.
33:58Sir, I was reporting in Chicago and we knew of places like NDC, National Defense College in Delhi.
34:05We knew about Siddhi Vinayak Temple in Mumbai.
34:08The Cochin, you know, naval base, some information had filtered out.
34:13What else, what were the other locations that they were wrecking for further attacks?
34:18Because I believe Hafiz Saeed that told them that you have to repeatedly keep, you have to repeatedly attack India.
34:24And even after 26-11, their wrecking continued, sir, till the time he was arrested in America.
34:31At the O'Hare report, if I remember correctly.
34:32See, if I correctly remember, they were actually, they were talking about Kumbh Mela.
34:37Kumbh Mela.
34:38Something like that.
34:39Yeah, sir, that time, I remember that particular thing.
34:42He was taking that these people who are actually coming to Haradwar and all.
34:47And also, they went to Puskar.
34:50Puskar is one of the targets.
34:52Other things, I am not able to remember.
34:57So, whether it's a highly educated Pakistani medical doctor like Tahawar Hussain Rana or a David Coleman Headley
35:05or an illiterate Ajmal Amir Kassab, the mindset is the same.
35:09Gazwai, Hind, they want to bleed India through a thousand cuts and target kafirs in India.
35:16I wonder if people after 26-11 woke up or do we continue, at least elements in our society,
35:22continue to sleepwalk through Pakistan's state-sponsored radical Islamist terror.
35:26Now, I want to get you some details that emerge from investigations.
35:29It's not source-based information.
35:30Each thing is attributed either to Federal Bureau of Investigation or National Investigation Agency
35:36or Rakesh Mariya in his book.
35:39Listen in.
35:40So, David Coleman Headley told his interrogators and I quote,
35:43I purchased the red and yellow wristband.
35:46I forget its name.
35:47I bought it so that the 10 youth could wear it as a cover so that people would think they're Indians.
35:56Ajmal Amir Kassab was not only given the Kalawa, he was also given a Hindu identity card.
36:02Now, Rakesh Mariya, then former Mumbai Commissioner, he was earlier Crime Branch Chief,
36:08he was one of the chief interrogators and the person who first interrogated Ajmal Amir Kassab.
36:13Well, he said, had Ajmal Amir Kassab not been caught alive, not my words, his words,
36:19had Ajmal Amir Kassab, that Pakistani terrorist, not been caught alive,
36:23the 26-11 Mumbai terror attacks would have been dubbed as the handiwork of Hindu terrorists.
36:29Kassab was among that group of 10 that carried the attack on November 2008
36:34and the lone Lashkar-e Taibat were being captured alive.
36:37They had been given Hindu names, red-coloured strings.
36:41In his memoir, let me say it now, Rakesh Mariya, who was heading the crime branch in CID
36:46and was investigating 26-11, he said Lashkar-e Taiba wanted Kassab to be killed
36:53and it to be known that he was a Bengaluru resident called Samir Dinesh Chaudhary
37:00with a red thread tied around his wrist, they would have palmed it off as Hindu terror.
37:05But their plan did not succeed because of one person and his name was Tukaram Ombale.
37:13Tukaram Ombale caught Kassab. He took a hail of bullets in his chest.
37:18Ajmal Amir Kassab fired his entire AK-47 rifle, entire magazine into his chest.
37:23So 28 bullets in his chest, but Tukaram Ombale continued to hold on to Ajmal Amir Kassab.
37:29He could not run away. He was caught alive.
37:32And that is how Rakesh Mariya and the Mumbai police knew that he was from Fareed Court in Pakistan.
37:37He said, and I quote, this is what Rakesh Mariya wrote in his book.
37:41If all had gone well, he, that is Kassab, would have been dead with a red string tied around his wrist like a Hindu.
37:50We would have found an identity card on his person with a fictitious name, Samir Dinesh Chaudhary,
37:56student of Arunaday degree and PG college in Dilkushnagar in Hyderabad, 50060,
38:04resident of 254 teachers colony, Bengaluru.
38:07Maria writes, there would have been screaming headlines on newspapers claiming how Hindu terrorists have attacked Mumbai.
38:17Over-the-top TV journalists would have made a beeline for Bengaluru to interview his family and neighbours.
38:24Chhabbizgara or 2611 would have been passed off as Hindu terror.
38:29And this is shocking. This is shocking, Sushant Sareem.
38:31The evil that Pakistan is, their eye for meticulous detail is actually there for the world to see now.
38:40Yeah, that's true, you know, Gaurav.
38:44And the problem is that very often we ignore, you know, this demonic kind of an urge in the Pakistanis
38:52to carry out the kind of crimes they carry out against India, against Hindus in particular,
38:58but against India in general.
39:00And we tend to, you know, miss out on how much of attention they pay on how they want to carry it out
39:07so that they can assume this posture of plausible deniability and then, you know,
39:12pretend like all that third-rate so-called non-liberals in Pakistan do, you know,
39:19giving these crocodile tears and stuff like that.
39:21I don't buy anything that comes from Pakistan.
39:24They are the most insincere and treacherous people that you can ever come across.
39:27So, but to give the devil their due, they do make these plots in a very meticulous manner.
39:35Also, look at the way they have given a sanctuary to terrorists like Tiger Memon and Dawood Ibrahim.
39:43Despite all international pressure, the Pakistanis have kept them in safe custody.
39:48They've ensured that nothing happens to them.
39:50Nothing happens to people like Hafiz Saeed and Masood Azhar
39:54and other third-rate terrorists that they associate with.
39:58So, I think we need to give them that credit,
40:01which is why I say that we must have a legal system, Gaurav,
40:05whereby we can sentence these people and pronounce punishments on them in absentia
40:09and then leave it to our agencies to mete out that punishment
40:13in whatever manner they deem fit and whatever manner necessary.
40:16Absolutely. But Ratan Sharda, apologies for coming to you so late,
40:21but I want to understand from you, sir.
40:23Look at how evil their plan was.
40:25Ten Pakistani terrorists attack India, bleed India,
40:29and then the plan was to palm it off as Hindu terror.
40:32Finally, perhaps it will come out.
40:34Who were their local collaborators?
40:35Gaurav, you will remember General Bipendra's famous talk about
40:42two-and-a-half front war.
40:44That half-front is much more dangerous than two fronts which are known to us.
40:48And this urge to create a Hindu terror myth began in 2007-8
40:53by changing the entire complexion of investigation in Malagao
40:59and in Samjata Express.
41:01So then you had Karnal Prohit framed,
41:04you had Swami Asimaran framed and many others framed
41:07and let Pakistan off the hook.
41:10When you let a terrorist state off the hook,
41:12you find 26-11 at our doors.
41:14And not only that, after that,
41:16within a month, how can a book be written?
41:19You have written books.
41:21You know, everybody sitting here is in books.
41:25Even research paper doesn't end in one month.
41:27You had an entire book of RSS in Sajay Chiv in a month
41:30where everybody crowed about the RSS role
41:32despite the clear-cut evidence of the person being a Muslim.
41:37I salute today Tukaram Umbale.
41:39Without him, I shudder to think about what would have happened
41:43in this country had he not been able to capture Kasab alive.
41:47And they were made sacrificial goats.
41:49And deniability you talk about right from the tribal attack,
41:52so-called tribal attack in 1947.
41:54When has Pakistan taken onus of any of their own people?
41:58They have not even buried their own brave javans of Kargil.
42:02They were buried with honor by our own forces.
42:06And this, the half-run we talk about,
42:09now already there are people are saying
42:11he should get very good, you know, legal support.
42:14And there is a gentleman today, Prithiraj Chauhan,
42:17who spoke in one of the channels saying,
42:23Tawur had a very good legal support and rights in the USA.
42:28That's why he could be safe for so many years.
42:31Unlike India, where minorities have no rights.
42:34Now, this is the complexion of the game you'll see in coming days.
42:37And well, that's exactly what Tawur Hussain Rana had also said,
42:41that he's a Pakistani, he's a Muslim,
42:43and he's an ex-army captain.
42:45Sending him to India would be akin to signing his death warrant.
42:47But Mr. Jain, your appreciation,
42:49because I want to dwell for a moment
42:51on this bogey of Hindu terror
42:53that was floated by these 10 Pakistani terrorists.
42:56And, you know, the point that Ratan Sharda raised,
43:00that, you know, soon we had a book called
43:02Chhabbiz Gara RSS Ki Sazish,
43:05despite screaming evidence
43:06that 26-11 was the handiwork of Lashkar-e-Taiba
43:10in Pakistan's deep state.
43:13Gaurav, I think Mr. Sharda has hit the nail on the head.
43:16I was the Inspector General of Police in Nasik range
43:19when the first blast took place in Malekau.
43:21We had arrested the accused
43:24who were the local conspirators.
43:26There were two accused
43:27who were supposed to be from Pakistan
43:30and who had left a couple of days
43:31before the blast took place.
43:34So all these accused had been identified
43:36and prosecuted.
43:37Our findings were upheld by the ATS of Maharashtra
43:42and subsequently the CBI, which took over.
43:45And then it was NIA subsequently.
43:48But during the government,
43:50the government of the day,
43:51when the blast of 2008 took place,
43:55they not only pinned the entire blame
43:57on the so-called Hindu terrorists,
44:00including Sadhvi Pragya and Captain,
44:02sorry, Colonel Purohit and the others,
44:05they also reopened the case of 2006,
44:10discharged all the accused
44:11and made these accused,
44:13alleged accused of 2008,
44:15the accused in 2006 conspiracy.
44:17With the result that today,
44:19the actual accused have been discharged
44:21from that case.
44:22Some fake accused have been brought in
44:24and booked.
44:25And now that case will go to dogs.
44:27I mean, it has no future at all.
44:29And subsequently,
44:30subsequently what happened
44:32in the Home Ministry,
44:33you know,
44:33we have the ex-Chief Minister of Madhya Pradesh
44:36who even today stands by his word.
44:38And this entire conspiracy of Bhagavad
44:40Atankhwad was brought out.
44:42It is so damn unfortunate in this country.
44:44Why do we need enemies in Pakistan?
44:46We have enemies in this country
44:47who are prospering in this country itself.
44:50People like Digvijay Singh
44:51and people like,
44:52you know,
44:53I don't want to name the other leaders.
44:54You know,
44:55I don't want to name any leader
44:56till an investigation.
44:58Yes, sir,
44:58you're absolutely right.
44:59I don't want to name any leader
45:00till an investigation is carried out
45:02and completed.
45:03You know,
45:03we hold...
45:04Yes,
45:05I hold Mr. Digvijay Singh
45:07in his esteem
45:08and perhaps he will clarify.
45:11He did try and clarify
45:12in Parliament
45:13when Sudhanshu Trivedi
45:15said,
45:16I did not name anyone.
45:18Aapne urtateer kyun le liya?
45:20And,
45:20you know,
45:21Union Home Minister Amit Shah
45:22also,
45:23you know,
45:24jumped into that.
45:24But Sushant Sareen,
45:26there's a precedent.
45:27You know,
45:28Mr. Jain rightly pointed out
45:30to the first Malegao blast case
45:32and said how it was changed.
45:33The same thing happened
45:34with Samjhota
45:35where Lashkar-e-Taiba's
45:37Arif Kasmani
45:38is mentioned in UN records
45:40and that too was changed.
45:42Does that indicate
45:43India's
45:44rather strange approach
45:46to tackling
45:47Pakistan state-sponsored terror,
45:49Sushant Sareen?
45:50So,
45:51Gaurav,
45:51you know,
45:51I think the question
45:52we need to ask ourselves
45:53is why in the last 10 years
45:55when this ambiguous approach
45:58towards terrorism
45:59has been given up
46:00and we are ready
46:01to call a terrorist
46:02a terrorist
46:02regardless of
46:03what his caste creed
46:05or whatever his background is,
46:07why do you think
46:08the incidents of terrorism
46:09have come down so much?
46:10And before that period,
46:13you know,
46:13you're talking about
46:14the Samjhota Express blast
46:15and I think that was
46:16really unfortunate
46:17because they tried to
46:18pin it on,
46:20you know,
46:21a saint,
46:22they tried to pin it on
46:23some of the other Hindus,
46:24they had no evidence,
46:26none whatsoever,
46:27they manufactured evidence
46:28and they gave the Pakistanis
46:30a clean shit,
46:31okay?
46:31Now,
46:32I can't think of anything
46:33more treacherous than this
46:34to do to your own country
46:36but even earlier
46:37in the 93 blast,
46:38what did we do?
46:40We had the then person in charge
46:43come on television
46:44and give an interview
46:45and say,
46:45well,
46:46you know,
46:46we said not 12 blasts
46:48but 13 blasts
46:48Muslim majority area
46:51so that,
46:52you know,
46:52we can say that
46:53this was a secular bomb attack.
46:55Is this secularism?
46:56Is this how you define secularism?
46:59Why do you think secularism
47:00has become a four-letter word
47:01in this country
47:02when you start batting
47:03for terrorists,
47:04right?
47:05And you try and cover up
47:06their crimes
47:06under the carpet,
47:08you try and put,
47:08you know,
47:09brush,
47:09airbrush,
47:10those kind of crimes.
47:12My,
47:12in my book,
47:13if somebody is responsible,
47:15please throw the book at him.
47:16I don't give a damn
47:17whether he's a Hindu,
47:18Muslim,
47:19Christian,
47:19whatever he might be.
47:20Absolutely.
47:21Are you going to,
47:22for your political reasons
47:23and to even the scores
47:25with your political rivals,
47:26manufacture a conspiracy
47:28where none existed
47:28and give a bailout
47:30to your most biggest enemy state,
47:33Pakistan,
47:34the guy who has been sponsoring
47:35terrorism and killing
47:36thousands of Indians.
47:37Are you going to do this?
47:39Now,
47:39if this is how you're going
47:40to run a country,
47:41then I,
47:41you know,
47:42then that half run
47:43that Mr. Rasharda
47:45has been talking about
47:46actually is a far more
47:48dangerous thing for India
47:49than anything else.
47:51So,
47:52you know that half front,
47:53the more dangerous elements
47:55are those who give cover fire
47:57to Pakistan state-sponsored
47:59radical Islamist terror.
48:00I have live images
48:01that are coming in
48:02from Palam technical area.
48:04That's a police vehicle
48:05that is coming out.
48:07I want to quickly cut across
48:08to Shivani Sharma
48:09who joins me for more.
48:11Shivani,
48:11I believe there is some movement
48:13that is taking place.
48:14I believe there is
48:16there is some information
48:17that's also been received
48:18at NIA headquarters.
48:19Bring us details,
48:20Shivani.
48:25What we've received
48:26to our sources
48:27is that the aircraft
48:28that is carrying
48:29Abu Rana
48:30will be landing
48:31at around 1822
48:32at the Palam area.
48:35and here at NIA headquarters
48:37there is the security
48:39being up.
48:40The vehicles have been
48:41placed out here.
48:42You can see
48:42the barricades are here.
48:44The police
48:45and the additional forces
48:46that have been deployed
48:47on standby
48:48since morning
48:49have been here
48:50and they all are ready
48:52to receive Rana
48:54as he lands in India.
48:56He'll be landing
48:57in some time
48:58and then he'll be
48:59taken into arrest
49:01by the NIA
49:02and NIA
49:03has already got
49:04the approval
49:04of the law ministry
49:05for taking the custody
49:07of Tahabur Rana
49:09to take the investigation ahead.
49:10So what we see
49:11is that an alert
49:12is in place.
49:13There are cars
49:15and special vehicles
49:16that are being placed
49:17outside the NIA headquarters.
49:19The additional forces
49:19are out here.
49:21I would like to show you
49:21if I can show you
49:23these vehicles
49:23which have been placed
49:24here outside
49:25the NIA headquarters
49:26and the barricades
49:28that have been put
49:28and the forces
49:30are waiting
49:31for Tahabur Rana
49:32and there is
49:33a probability
49:34that after being
49:35put into arrest
49:36by the forces
49:38on the Indian soil
49:39he can be brought
49:40to NIA headquarters
49:42directly
49:42because NIA
49:43would want to
49:44proceed with the
49:45process
49:46in due protocols
49:48when he comes here
49:49and it was a possibility
49:51that he can be
49:52produced today itself
49:53but it seems
49:54little unlikely
49:55because of the delay
49:56that is being caused
49:57in his landing
49:57here in Delhi
49:59so when he will land
50:01there is a possibility
50:02he can be
50:03put under arrest
50:06of course
50:06and then brought
50:07to the NIA headquarters
50:08which are ready
50:08they are awaiting
50:09since morning
50:10the roads have been
50:11closed here
50:12for normal traffic
50:13the BG is inside
50:15he is conducting
50:16meetings and
50:17preparations
50:17are being viewed
50:18by him
50:19that what will be done
50:20what will be the next
50:21force of action
50:21when Rana is here
50:22at the NIA headquarters
50:23in Delhi
50:24you know
50:25there are some
50:26who are trying
50:26to play down
50:27the importance
50:28of Tahavur Hussain Rana
50:29being extradited
50:31to India
50:32and his interrogation
50:33but do keep in mind
50:34Tahavur Hussain Rana
50:35was the money
50:37he had the money
50:39he funded
50:41David Coleman
50:42Hedley
50:42he paid
50:43for that office
50:44to be set up
50:45in Mumbai
50:46and how did he
50:47get the money
50:47now probe deeper
50:49you will get
50:50a Pakistan ISI
50:51connection
50:52and perhaps
50:52that is what will happen
50:53but that is only step 1
50:54he knew of the
50:55entire plot
50:56he knew
50:57the places
50:58that had to be
50:59targeted
50:59and 26-11
51:00Mumbai terror attacks
51:01was just one part
51:02of it
51:03remember
51:03between
51:0411 and 21
51:06November 2008
51:08he had wrecked
51:08all the locations
51:10that the terrorists
51:10were to target
51:11so he also knows
51:12who the local
51:13handlers were
51:13he arranged funds
51:15even for David Coleman
51:16Hedley
51:16in India
51:17so who were the Indians
51:18who were funding
51:19David Coleman Hedley
51:20when Hedley
51:21travelled from
51:22one city
51:22to the other
51:23Rana himself
51:24travelled with his
51:24wife to Kochi
51:25he travelled to
51:26several other cities
51:27including Pushkar
51:28and Haridwar
51:29and Harpur
51:30what was the
51:31bigger plan
51:31so his interrogation
51:33will not just reveal
51:34those missing links
51:35in 26-11
51:36but also future
51:37terror attack plans
51:38of Lashkar-e-Taiba
51:40and Pakistan's
51:41ISI
51:42we will continue
51:43to track the story
51:44very very closely
51:45of Lashkar-e-Taiba