Another person named as a wanted terrorist on the list handed over to Pakistan by India has been traced to a high-security prison in Mumbai. The new revelation comes as an already embarrassed government was still struggling to control the damage done by the featuring of Thane resident Wazhul Khan on its list of “most wanted” fugitives.
Feroz Abdul Khan, number 24 on the list of 50 most wanted believed to be in Pakistan, is currently an inmate of Mumbai’s Arthur Road Jail. The Mumbai police (crime branch) arrested him on February 7, 2010 from Koparkhairane in Navi Mumbai where he had been living under the alias Ferozuddin Shaikh. According to the CBI, Khan had confessed his role in the 1993 Mumbai blasts after which he travelled to Karachi in 1997 and 1999.
A CBI inspector was suspended and two CBI officials — a superintendent of police and a deputy superintendent of police — were transferred after the fresh development which came after news on Thursday morning that the CBI team that had gone to secure the extradition of Purulia arms-drop case accused Kim Davy had landed in Copenhagen with an expired warrant, a fact that was brought home by Davy’s counsel in court. The CBI admitted Thursday that there had been a “slip up” over the arrest warrant, which had expired in January this year, and that a fresh warrant had been faxed to the team in Copenhagen.
The CBI began wiping the egg off its face by removing its own list of “most wanted” persons from its website late Thursday night and said it would check the other names it had provided, raising the possibility that India may be left with no option but to review the entire list of names given to Pakistan. Forty of the names in this list of 50 have been provided by the CBI and IB and the remainder by the National Investigation Agency.
“The CBI has conveyed to the home ministry that the lapse regarding Feroz was on the agency’s part. When the CBI forwarded the list to the MHA, they forgot to delete the name of this person,” a home ministry spokesperson said. The agency has registered a preliminary enquiry to probe the lapse. “It was the responsibility of the CBI to remove his name from the list of most wanted. The CBI is the nodal agency for Interpol matters in India. Officials concerned should have requested Interpol headquarters for the removal of Feroz’s name after his arrest as a red corner notice was issued against his name,” said a high-ranking CBI official.
Thursday’s “goof-up” came to light just a day after Union home minister P. Chidambaram said only one name in the list of 50 was wrongly included in the list. On Wednesday, Mr Chidambaram had owned responsibility for the inclusion of Wazhul Kamar Khan’s name in the list of fugitives. Listed at number 41, Wazhul Khan was found living in Thane, near Mumbai.
The CBI appears to be blundering along where persons being probed by it are concerned. For instance, it has come to light that Rajkumar Meghen, chairman of the banned Manipur-based outfit United National Liberation Front (UNLF), figures as a fugitive on another CBI list despite his arrest earlier.
On Wednesday, Mr Chidambaram had termed the first goof-up as a “genuine error” by the Mumbai police and “oversight” by the Intelligence Bureau.
The BJP dubbed the second goof-up by the government as “shameful”. The party targeted home minister P. Chidambaram, alleging that he was responsible and that the home ministry is a “total failure”. BJP president Nitin Gadkari said: “It is a failure of the home ministry and the way in which it has been happening it is very unfortunate and shameful for the country.” He added, “The agency is only blackmailing political parties... They have acted against the Opposition leaders. This is only protecting the interests of the Congress party. CBI is Congress Bureau of investigation.”
“It is a very serious embarrassment. The home minister has now admitted the mistake that it made. Now it is up to the government to see how they correct it. Let us see,” CPI(M) leader Sitaram Yechury told reporters when asked about the goof-up.
In a red corner notice issued against him, Interpol accuses Feroz Abdul Khan of “terrorist activities, conspiring to cause explosions with intent to cause death and damage to property”. Another Interpol profile of him states that he was involved in the landing of arms and explosives in Mumbai.
Feroz, also known as Hamza, was allegedly the lieutenant of gangster Mohammed Dossa. After his arrest last year, crime branch officers had said that he was instrumental in the landing and transporting of arms and explosives prior to the 1993 blasts and had also thrown some of it into Khandargaon Creek after the case was cracked. Feroz is believed to have provided many leads to the police about Dawood Ibrahim, Chhota Shakeel and Tiger Memon after his arrest.
When contacted, Mr Surinder Kumar, inspector-general of police (prisons), said, “There is indeed a man named Feroz Abdul Khan at Arthur Road Jail currently and he is an accused in the 1993 bomb blasts case. However, I am not aware of his name being on the most wanted list.”
Feroz’s lawyer, Farhana Shah, said, “According to the prosecution, my client was involved in landing of arms and ammunition at Dighi on January 9, 1993 and its transportation. As far as his stay outside India is concerned, the CBI has submitted various documents about the places he had travelled to in its supplementary charges. This is yet to be established in court.”
Speaking about whether Feroz went to Pakistan, Ms Shah said, “I would not like to comment on the matter as it is sub judice. Charges against Feroz have not been framed and his trial is yet to begin.” He added that Feroz had been in India since 2004.
Soon after the lapse was detected, a blame game began within the CBI. A CBI official blamed the Mumbai zone of the agency for not informing CBI HQ about the arrest of Feroz. It was a failure on the part of Mumbai zone officials of the CBI, he said. CBI spokesperson Dharini Mishra said on Thursday night, “We are examining the matter and further strict action will be initiated against erring officials.”
The CBI, probing the 1993 serial blasts case, had issued an Interpol red corner notice against Feroz in 1994 but the notice was not withdrawn even after his arrest last year. The NIA quickly clarified on Thursday evening that the 10 names it had furnished for the list of 50 are “not at present available in India and are suspected to be in Pakistan”.
The MHA said, “he CBI has intimated MHA that on verification of records they have found that the name of Feroz figured erroneously in the list of most wanted provided by them to the MHA for home secretary-level talks with Pakistan in March this year. The CBI will check other names that it provided.”