JOIN USA letter dealing with the Home department, hosted on the official website of the Government of Karnataka (sachivalaya vahini), has revealed that a suspected unit of the Indian Mujahideen (IM) operatives is working secretly in Bangalore.
“...6 or more members who are working for Indian Mujahideen and all are working very secret in bangalore with financial support by Rizwan The Head (sic),” the subject matter of the letter reads. It was despatched from the Principal Secretary (PCAS), Home Department, to the Additional Secretary (Law & Order). The letter, bears the number “NIL/37637” and is dated July 6, 2013.
The Sachivalaya Vahini (secretariat voice) is a website of the government which hosts official communications including letters, government orders and files.
That Karnataka has link’s with the banned organisation through the Bhatkal brothers is no secret. While Yasin, the most wanted among the three Bhatkal brothers, was nabbed in a joint operation by the National Investigation Agency (NIA) and the Bihar Police, the letter talks about a module being financed by another top IM operative.
While it is difficult to conclusively say who ‘Rizwan’, (the person named in the letter) is, there are indications that he could be one of the IM’s top operatives, Amir Reza/Raza Khan who has aliases like Parvez and Muttaki, besides being known as Rizwan.
The NIA has announced a Rs 10-lakh reward for any information leading to his arrest. He is wanted in two cases in Delhi and Kolkata in 2012 and 2010 respectively.
Officials’ ‘ignorance’
Surprisingly, almost all senior officers from the Home department and the Karnataka Police have feign ignorance to the letter though it is in the public domain for the last 54 days.
“These are matters that are officially confidential and cannot be disclosed now,” R Auradkar, Commissioner of Police, Bangalore, said, adding that he did not know of the letter.
Bhaskar Rao, IGP, Internal Security Division (ISD), said: “Our department cannot comment on it now. Confirmation or denial has to come from the top most office. I am not aware of anything.”
On contacting Lalrokhuma Pachau, DG&IGP, he said: “I do not have concrete information about this. The matter is sensitive and officials from the home department or the government will be the best to comment on it.”
While Jyothi Prakash Mirji, Principal Secretary (PCAS), who is on leave, remained incommunicado, the Additional Secretary (L&O) said: “As it has now been brought to my notice, I will look into the files.”
Additional Chief Secretary, Home Department, S K Patnayak pleaded ignorance to the matter as the matter is handled by the Principal Secretary (PCAS).