Modi Government's Diplomatic Triumph
17 years ago, on the dark night of November 26, 2008, the metropolis of Mumbai was rocked by bullets. 10 terrorists of Pakistan-trained Lashkar-e-Taiba attacked several places simultaneously. The of death that started from Leo Pord Cafe and Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminal ended at the Taj Mahal Hotel. The attacks continued for four days. About 170 people died in these attacks. Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS) chief Hemant Karkare, Additional Commissioner of Mumbai Police Ashok Kamte and Police Inspector Vijay Salaskar were killed in the attacks. Initially, no one had any idea that such a big terrorist attack took place in Mumbai, but gradually the scale and seriousness of the attack was realized. This is a date that makes the eyes of the countrymen inconsolable. Pictures of panic appear in front of the eyes. This date scratches the old wound of Mumbai. Although Kasab, the lone Pakistani terrorist caught in the attack, was given the death penalty, the brutality left by the attack is still present in Mumbai. Who can forget Sub Inspector Tukaram, who captured terrorist Kasab alive, who was shot dead by another terrorist.
Tahawwur Rana, a mastermind of this attack, is in the clutches of India today. Tahawwur Rana, a Canadian citizen of Pakistani origin, was extradited from the US and brought to India. Rana's arrest is a huge diplomatic victory for India. The US Supreme Court had approved a proposal to extradite Rana to India under an extradition treaty. Although Rana tried many tactics, all his petitions in the US courts were turned down. Rana's extradition is considered a big victory for India because he is the same person who knows all the secrets related to the criminal conspiracy behind the Mumbai attack. This is India's biggest victory in the fight against terrorism. Prime Minister Narendra Modi, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar and National Security Advisor Ajit Doval have been making diplomatic efforts for this. On June 10, 2020, India filed a complaint seeking the arrest of Tahawwur Rana and requested the US to arrest him. The U.S. then arrested him.
The US court may have now approved the extradition of Tahawwur Rana, but it had already accepted that India was one of the most terrorism-affected countries in the world. At the same time, the US had also expressed concern over the slow process of India's campaign against terrorism, saying that terrorist attacks and other such incidents show that terrorists are financially rich due to large funding. The annual 'Country Reports on Terrorism 2008' of the State Department mentioned the 26/11 Mumbai attacks as well as other major attacks in India in 2008, including the Jaipur blasts, the Indian embassy in Kabul as well as the blasts in Ahmedabad, Delhi and Assam.
Who does not know that Tahawwur Rana had conspired with Dawood Saeed Gilani i.e. David Coleman Headley to carry out the attack. David Headley opened an office of a company named First World Immigration Services in Mumbai to hide his identity and introduced himself as a businessman. Gradually, he got acquainted with well-known personalities in the film industry. During his visit to India, he did a recce of the places in Mumbai where the attack was to be carried out. Rana had helped Headley financially. The US had also arrested Headley for plotting an attack. Now the question is that the US handed over Rana to India but he is silent on the case of David Headley. Headley is a Pakistani-American citizen who was a double-cross agent. Headley saved his life by dealing with America. Headley has become an asset of the United States ever since he disclosed the secrets of Lashkar, ISI and Al Qaeda to the US. At the moment, Headley's safety in the US raises big questions. At present, the families of the victims of Mumbai are still waiting for justice. Only if Rana is punished will there be some balm on the wounds of 26/11 because Mumbai still demands an account of the wounds.