Did Gujarati fishermen aid Mumbai strike?

BORSI-MACHHIWAD (NAVSARI): Was Indian fishing trawler 'Kuber' hijacked or were Gujarati fishermen part of the terror conspiracy? The fact that the vessel had once been captured by the Pakistan Marine Agency and some of these fishermen had spent time in Pakistani jails is fuelling this question, as the Mumbai anti terrorism squad descended on this tiny fishing village in South Gujarat on Sunday.

���Kuber��� was used by the terrorists who sailed from Karachi to wreak havoc in Mumbai. So far, it was believed that the terrorists hijacked the boat between Porbander and Jakhau and used it on their onward journey close to Mumbai, before switching over to rubber boats for the final landing at the Gateway of India.

Getting to the truth may not be easy. Senior intelligence sources pointed out that all the fishermen were dead and did not leave anything, say GPS, which could help the agencies probe the suspicions.

After skipper Amarsinh Tandel���s body was found on the abandoned ship, off the Mumbai coast, the worst fears of fishing families here were confirmed . While Tandel hailed from Porbander in Saurashtra, the other four crew members were from various coastal villages dotting south Gujarat.

Mumbai ATS went around houses while Gujarat ATS also chased the trail to Borsi-Machhiwad , Krishnanagar, Umargam and adjoining villages where the four missing fishermen have homes.

Top LeT man saw off killers

The 10 terrorists who unleashed mayhem in Mumbai were personally seen off from Azizabad in Karachi by Lashkar-e-Taiba veteran Zakiur Rahman, alias Chachu, usually known to keep a distance from cells that are sent on operations to India.

The personal involvement of Rahman, one of the seniormost ���Amirs��� of LeT, signifies the importance the outfit attached to the Mumbai operation, top ATS sources said.

Also found on the satphone used by the terrorists on their way to Mumbai was a mobile number from Pakistan often dialled in the past by Lashkar operative Fahim Ansari. Ansari was arrested in February this year for his involvement in the attack on the CRPF camp in Rampur, Uttar Pradesh, on January 1.