India releases list of most 50 'most wanted fugitives' in Pak - Dawood's on it!

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Spurred on by the May 2 raid that saw US Special Forces hunt down Osama Bin Laden, India has now released its '50 Most Wanted' who are, according to intelligence reports, hiding in Pakistan.

The list includes underworld don Dawood Ibrahim, 26/11 mastermind and LeT founder Hafiz Saeed and dreaded terrorist Zaki ur Rehman Lakhvi.

And Dawood seems to be the main target.

Just hours after American commandos swooped down on a luxury mansion in Abbottabad and shot dead the world's most wanted man, Home Minister P. Chidambaram released a report saying Dawood was in Karachi, and that he was under the care of Pakistani military elements. Also, India's intelligence agencies said the he had a total of five addresses in the country, including an Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI)-provided safe house on Bhurban Hill, just 20 kms from Islamabad.

Experts, however, claim India's intelligence analysis is still 'raw' and that Dawood could be anywhere - from Jeddah in Saudi Arabia to the western Pakistani city of Quetta. It remains, anybody's guess.

Meanwhile, the rest of India's most wanted list goes like this.

Hafiz Saeed, who is involved in Mumbai terror attack and various other attacks in India, tops the list which also includes Jaish-e-Mohammed chief Maulana Masood Azhar, the principal accused in the 2001 Parliament attack after his release in exchange of hostages in the Khandhar hijack episode in 1999.

The list also includes names of al Qaeda operative Illyas Kashmiri, who is accused of transnational crime and conspiracy to commit various terrorist acts in India, close associates of Dawood, Memon Ibrahim alias Tiger Memon, Shaikh Shakeel alias Chhota Shakeel, Memon Ayub Abdul Razak, Anis Ibrahim Kaskar Shaikh, Anwar Ahmed Haji Jamal and Mohammed Ahmed Dosa, all involved in the 1993 serial bombing in Mumbai.

Chief of Hizbul Mujahideen Sayeed Salauddin, Jammu and Kashmir Liberation Front founder Amanullah Khan, Punjab terrorists Lakhbir Singh, Paramjit Singh Panjwar, Ranjit Singh alias Neeta and Wadhawa Singh were also named as most wanted fugitives.

Names of Mumbai terror attack case accused Sajid Majid, Major Iqbal, Major Sameer Ali, Sayed Abdul Rehman alias Pasha and Abu Hamza were included in the list of fugitives.

While an Abottabbad-style operation seems a little far-fetched for India, the military has refused to rule out capability.

"Yes, we can," say experts.

But they caution India to first upgrade its special forces equipment, prepare for 'catastrophic' fallout, including a possible nuclear conflict, and bring itself up to have a political will before it even thinks of such a daredevilry.

Their remarks, earlier this month, has already invited angry reactions from Pakistan's Foreign Secretary Salman Bashir and army chief General Asfaq Parvez Kayani, who warned against such 'misadventure', saying it would invite a 'catastrophic' response.