Headley’s handlers used Indo-Pak match as cover

NEW DELHI: American Lashkar terrorist David Coleman Headley’s Pakistani handlers — Abdur Rehman (a retired Pakistan Army major) and Sajid Majid — had visited India in 2005 on the pretext of watching a Indo-Pak cricket match. They had travelled to Delhi and Dehradun for a recce of the National Defence College ( NDC) and Indian Military Academy ( IMA) respectively as terror targets. This was revealed by Headley during his questioning by interrogators of the National Investigation Agency (NIA) in June.

The interrogation report also carries some information on a number of aspects relating to the 26/11 Mumbai terror attack mission of Lashkar. It includes information on the jihadis’ attempt to get “the arrested attacker (Ajmal Kasab) released in exchange for some people held hostage in Chabad House” .

About his handlers’ visit to India, Headley told the NIA that Sajid Majid along with Abdur Rehman Hashim alias Pasha had visited India using the oneday match in 2005 as a cover. The match, which was played on April 17, 2005, was historic since the then Pakistan President Pervez Musharraf was among the VVIP spectators along with Prime Minister Manmohan Singh.

“Sajid, of course, did not reveal anything about this visit to me. However, Abdur Rehman had given a detailed narration of this visit to India in April 2005,” Headley was quoted as saying in the 106-page report of the NIA.
This report, which has been prepared after nearly 34 hours of questioning over a period of one week in Chicago, quoted Headley as saying that Sajid and Rehman crossed into India through the Wagah border.

The duo spent some time in Delhi during which they carried out a recce of some places including NDC and had “possibly gone to the IMA, Dehradun” , he told his interrogators.