The Condensed Matter Physics of QCD
http://online.itp.ucsb.edu/online/bblunch/rajagopal/
Another Dr Krishna in the news...
Manufacturing terror
uploaded 12 Nov 2002
When Indian police blamed Pakistani terrorists for a shopping centre
shootout, it seems to have been a crude attempt to defame Islamabad, writes
Luke Harding
It had all seemed so convincing. When two "terrorists" arrived on Sunday
November 3 at Ansal Plaza, Delhi's most upmarket shopping centre, the
police were waiting for them.
The men parked their car in the underground basement and got out. When a
plain clothed officer challenged them, they allegedly opened fire. In the
ensuing 15-minute "encounter" both militants were shot dead.
The following day Indian newspapers published gruesome photos of one of the
slain "terrorists" lying on the floor, his finger still on the trigger of a
Chinese-made pistol. The Indian government promptly announced that the
"terrorists" were from Pakistan, and congratulated the police on foiling a
major attack one the eve of Diwali, India's biggest festival.
There was only one problem with the police's story: it wasn't true.
Yesterday the Ansal Plaza "shootout" - which took place a short walk from
India's only branch of Marks and Spencer - was beginning to turn into a
serious embarrassment for India's deputy prime minister LK Advani, who
visited the scene on Monday.
Indian newspapers had already pointed out several discrepancies in the
police's version of events. Why did one of the "terrorists" have a black
eye? And why did they choose to drive into an underground car park instead
of opening fire immediately on shoppers?
Yesterday a doctor who was in the basement at the time gave dramatic
testimony. He claimed that both men were unarmed when police shot them. Dr
H Krishna said the men stumbled out of their car and appeared either
drugged or suffering from lack of sleep. They were empty-handed and walking
with difficulty, he added.
The police opened fire a minute later, killing the "terrorists" instantly.
When Dr Krishna tried to explain this to reporters, officers escorted him
away. He later gave his account to India's Asian Age newspaper, and then
wisely disappeared off to Australia. Several intelligence officers had
turned up outside his home. Indian human rights organisations have now
asked the police for an explanation.
The incident - or lack of incident - has, of course, a wider political
significance. India has persistently accused Pakistan of supporting
Islamist militants who infiltrate into India to carry out attacks in
Kashmir and elsewhere.
There is no doubt that New Delhi has a strong point: the raid two months
ago, for example, on a Hindu temple in Gujarat, in which 30 people were
shot dead, was almost certainly the work of a Pakistan-based militant
organisation, Lashkar-i-Toiba. But the "encounter" on November 3 appears to
have been entirely stage-managed by the Indian police.
It was, presumably, a crude attempt to defame Islamabad. Pakistan has said
it had nothing to do with the dead men, whose true identities remain a
mystery. Last night Indian detectives were doggedly sticking to their
increasingly discredited version of events.
The officer in charge, Neeraj Kumar, said his men had recovered an AK-56
rifle and two pistols, as well as a mobile phone and three diaries. These
apparently gave details of a plot to kill Mr Advani. He denied that his
officers had planted the weapons on the dead men.
But few people will be satisfied with his assurances � and ballistics
experts have pointed out that the "first reaction" of someone hit by heavy
fire is to drop whatever they are holding.
Such murky "encounters" take place routinely between security forces and
"militants" in Indian Kashmir. But Kashmir is a long way away from India's
capital and they rarely get much scrutiny.
Any shootout in the heart of Delhi - a stroll away from Pizza Express,
McDonalds and Lacoste - is bound to attract attention, and this one has
provoked more questions than answers.
The entire episode does not reflect well on either the Indian home ministry
or the police force, and undermines New Delhi's claim that it is the victim
of Pakistan-sponsored terrorism. There is plenty of genuine terrorism in
India. There is no need to invent more.
Source: The Guardian
