‘Thank God!’ sighed Ray.
The plan would require Ray and Laila to pose as a rich couple flying into Karachi from Dubai. The backstory would be that a life of luxury and opulence had taken its toll on ‘the husband’, whose kidneys had stopped functioning. Doctors had recommended an immediate transplant and with his doting wife in tow, Ray was in Pakistan for just that. Locating a seller would not be difficult, Waris pointed out, as he handed Laila a printout with a list of four recommended kidney brokers from which to choose.
‘You’re probably wondering why I selected these guys. My first criterion was that the broker had to be a mid-level fellow; not too well-known and not too obscure. Secondly, he shouldn’t have any obvious links to the ISI or the army. And finally, he should be located in a city that is convenient to us – Karachi. Why is it convenient? Because that is where a sizeable chunk of Muhajirs have settled down, and that could be good cover for us. In case of a crisis, we can lose ourselves among them. The Pakistan army and ISI will have a tough time tracing us,’ explained Waris.
‘Hang on a second,’ said Vikrant.
Waris looked over at him. ‘If we’re going to this dig as Bangladeshis,’ he said ‘then we really should—’
‘We should be fluent in Bengali,’ said Brijesh, cutting him off.
‘Yes,’ nodded Vikrant.
Ray ventured, ‘If you want, I know a man who could sit on the other end of the radio unit that you and Brijesh can wear in your ears, translate and give you real time responses to use in conversations. If that’s all right.’
‘That is unacceptable, Ray,’ said Waris bluntly. ‘What we need is for them to be reasonably capable of speaking in Bengali.’
‘How the hell am I going to learn a new language overnight?’ asked a shocked Vikrant.
‘You will try,’ said Waris firmly.
‘It’s not very difficult,’ offered Ray helpfully.
‘That’s why you will teach them,’ said Waris.
‘What?’ asked Ray, Vikrant and Brijesh in unison.
In a few hours, Brijesh and Vikrant were flipping through their brand new Bangladeshi passports, complete with photos in disguise. Men of the build and appearence of Brijesh and Vikrant would not blend in with a group of highly skilled archaeologists. In any case, wigs, fake beards, glasses and false teeth would be used to help the pair evade facial recognition programmes. Meanwhile, the wheels that would get the names of Mirza and Rafique on the UNESCO list had been set in motion. The only obstacles that remained were Kang’s entry into Pakistan and the basic mastery of Bengali on the part of the two archaeologists.
Ray turned towards Brijesh and Vikrant. ‘Say aamar naam … xyz.’
They both said in a chorus, ‘Aamar naam xyz.’
Ray restrained himself and said, ‘Sir, in place of xyz you have to use your Bangladeshi name.’
‘Oh, I was wondering why you were saying xyz after naam – what a strange language!’ exclaimed Brijesh.
‘It’s not a strange language, it is the sweetest and most romantic language on earth,’ Ray retorted.
‘Of course we don’t question that, we just have to absorb it’s sweetness and understand the romance,’ said Vikrant.
‘Aamar naam Mushfiq,’ Brijesh said, and Ray nodded with approval.
‘Aamar naam Nasiruddin,’ Vikrant joined the fray.
Ray went on to the next lesson.
‘Tomar naam ki?’ he said. And before they could make a mess of it, he explained, ‘That means, what’s your name?’
Both nodded, trying to mouth the question.
Ray then asked, ‘Tumi kemon aacho?’
Waris could see the two of them were struggling. Ray let out a small moan, no doubt feeling he had been saddled with the dumbest of students. The trio were sent off by Waris to a separate room, with a white board and other accessories. This was serious work.
Then Waris turned towards Kang, who had also been observing the mutilation of the Bengali language.
‘You will be on the jatha that will go to Pakistan for Guru Nanak Dev’s birth anniversary in November,’ said Waris, adding, ‘that will give you enough time to recuperate and it will keep you away from the ISI until the last phase.’
‘And it will let me be myself – a Sikh,’ added Kang, with more than a tinge of vindication in his voice.
24
Two communities have been the biggest victims of Partition in 1947: Shia Muslims and Sikhs, both minority groups. The Sikhs had suffered the most because their sacred places and religious shrines were also usurped by Pakistan. The holiest of Sikh shrines is in Nankana Sahib, the birthplace of their first guru, Guru Nanak, who was born in 1469 AD. The second holiest spot is the shrine of Guru Arjan Singh, the fifth guru, followed by that of Panja Sahib and others. But the Partition cruelly ensured that those shrines became a part of Pakistan.
This resulted in mindless violence, including trains returning to Amritsar with piles of Sikh corpses. The bloodshed continued for days. What should ideally have been managed and looked after by a Sikh council came under the control of the Pakistan Waqf Board.
Soon after assuming presidency in 1978, Zia ul Haq realized that he could exploit the Sikhs’ devotion to further his own nefarious designs against India. In the eighties, he gave birth to K2 – Kashmir and Khalistan. The Sikhs were incited to rebel against the Indian government and seek an independent state of Khalistan, and thus began the hijacking of planes landing in Lahore. Here, the Khalistani terrorists were allowed to hold press conferences and spew venom against the Indian government’s atrocities.
Later, Zia allowed the planes and passengers to return to India but the terrorists were granted amnesty and allowed to stay back in the Nankana Sahib precinct. Many Sikhs were misled and became a part of Pakistani machinations because they believed that they would get to spend their lives in this holy place, where they preferred to live and die.
Eventually, when the Indian government managed to crush the Khalistani movement, they ensured that Sikhs were allowed to visit these shrines on a regular basis. The Pakistani government also allowed them to do the same annually. The Shiromani Gurudwara Prabandhak Committee (SGPC) organizes four group visits called jathas every year – during Baisaikhi in March and the birth anniversaries of Maharaja Ranjit Singh, Guru Arjan Singh and of course, the birth anniversary of Guru Nanak, which is the biggest and largest jatha.
A jatha of over 4,000 pilgrims is organized every year on Guru Nanak Jayanti after it has been cleared by the Ministry of Home Affairs. These jathas include non-Sikhs as well. Thus the Indian government found a window of opportunity: they began sending ‘messengers’ to bring back information from post boxes or Indian sleeper assets, following clandestine meetings in Lahore’s Anarkali market.
Until Inder Kumar Gujral became the prime minister and enforced his Gujral doctrine, RAW and military intelligence managed to ferret out significant actionable intelligence. But the Gujral doctrine had devastating effects on the Indian intelligence community operating within Pakistan. In exchange for an assurance that ISI officials would not work in India, Gujral dismantled RAW’s architecture in Pakistan, as a result of which there are no agents posted there.
The absence of agents in Pakistan didn’t perturb a man as irrepressible as Waris, who had long decided that if there were no agents there, he would ensure he put a few. Since the Jeddah fiasco in July, Waris had quietly been planning to penetrate Pakistan, to eliminate the brains behind 26/11. Finally, Kang had come to him with the idea of entering Pakistan as part of one of these jathas. Since they had already missed the July jatha which had left for the birth anniversary of Maharaja Ranjit Singh, they would try for the next on the occasion of Guru Nanak Jayanti, on 17 November.
While Brijesh, Vikrant and Laila were busy planning their foray into Pakistan through subterfuge and clever camouflage, Waris and Kang perfected their plans for the jatha visit to Nankana Sahib. They would leave for Lahore on 10 November, via the Wagah border special train.<
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When the team was ready and their roles clearly defined, Waris sought a meeting with his friend Sky to apprise him of their plans, together with his team. Even though Sky had all but disassociated himself from the team except for logistical support, Waris felt it necessary to keep him in the loop. After all, Sky needed to know what he would later be expected to profess no knowledge of. He arrived at their base, covertly and low-key, and the meeting began.
‘All six of us will be in Pakistan at different times under various covers,’ said Waris.
Sky was clearly taken aback at the audacity of having all six of the team in Pakistan.
‘While Vikrant and Brijesh will travel to Islamabad via Dhaka as archaeologists and specialists, Laila and Ray will enter Pakistan via Dubai as Mr and Mrs Khalid Latif, who are US green card holders; Mr Latif has serious kidney issues.’
‘Who is Khalid Latif?’ Sky asked, though he had an inkling.
‘Our Bangla bandhu Ray, with his frail look and emaciated face; he can pass off as a man on the verge of renal failure,’ Waris said, with a chuckle.
‘And since a single male can raise suspicion, his burkha-clad wife will give him company,’ Laila added.
‘After they have accomplished their mission in Mansehra, Vikrant and Brijesh will return via the Kashmir border, through the Uri sector. Since most of the Pakistani army and the ISI will concentrate on these two men on the run, we get enough leeway to do our work.’
‘Why do you want to go to Pakistan?’ Sky asked.
‘For two reasons. I want to destroy the Lashkar headquarters, the Jamaat-ud-Daawa office in Muridke that sent us Kasab and his friends on 26/11. Also, I am sure of finding Haaris Saeed, the mastermind of the attacks, in the Muridke complex,’ Waris said.
‘You could get killed, sir,’ said Kang.
‘Oye Sardar, are you scared of dying?’ asked Waris.
‘No sir, not at all.’
‘What’s the plan?’ Ray asked.
‘You will give us technical support, while Laila, Kang and I will target Muridke,’ said Waris.
‘But how will you reach Muridke? It’s difficult to blow up forty-three kilometres of the Lashkar complex. Even air-dropped bombs or American drones cannot have the desired impact,’ Sky said.
‘If an Indian reporter like Harinder Baweja can reach Muridke soon after 26/11 along with a video camera and a television channel can show footage of the complex, why can’t we? Also, we don’t want to target the whole complex; they also have a hospital, swimming pools, masjid, etc. We will only target the markaz, the training centre or school,’ Waris summed up his plan.
‘How will Laila contribute in the markaz?’ Brijesh asked.
‘Laila is my passport to the markaz. She will help us get in and out of Muridke. The Diwali celebrations will be organized by Kang and me,’ Waris said.
‘How do you get in and out of Pakistan?’ Vikrant asked.
‘Kang and I will go with the jatha to Nankana Sahib. Muridke is exactly 99 kilometres from there. If all goes well, we should be able to finish our job in the markaz and be back with the jatha in five to six hours,’ said Waris.
‘What about Mr and Mrs Khalid Latif?’ Sky asked.
‘Mr Latif will be booked into the special suite of the Sindh Institute of Urology Transplantation (SIUT) in Karachi, undergoing various tests as a prerequisite for a renal transplant and taking short naps in between. His wife can make a trip to her relatives in Lahore and back the same evening,’ Waris said.
‘We will return to the US via Dubai, postponing our transplant programme for later,’ Laila finished.
‘Things can go wrong, Ali; what is your back-up plan?’ Sky said, with a hint of concern. He still hadn’t recovered from Jeddah. None of them had.
‘We could cross over from the Durand Line to enter Afghanistan via the Hindu Kush or we could become part of a smuggling caravan and move towards Balochistan to Iran, via the Sistan province … There are several other possibilities,’ said Waris, when suddenly Brijesh interrupted.
‘Sir, things can always go horribly wrong, but we will improvize. Shift gears and tackle the situation with contingency plans. Just waiting, or hoping for things to be right won’t help us,’ he said.
‘All right.’ Sky made a placatory gesture, ‘So what happens next?’
‘Brijesh and Vikrant leave for Mansehra in a couple of days. Laila and Ray will leave for Dubai a week after that and take the flight to Karachi once they get a signal from me. Kang and I will board the special bus on 10 November as Jaspinder Singh Kang and Gurubaksh Singh,’ Waris replied.
‘How will we keep in touch?’ Vikrant asked.
‘Through WhatsApp, email and Terminal,’ said Ray.
‘Terminal?’ asked Kang.
‘It’s a satellite phone. These days we get satphones which are highly advanced and can be used in remote areas. They don’t need a cellular tower for signals. I would recommend Thuraya XT Dual. It can be hidden in your underwear and is a powerful satphone. If you wish, I can teach you guys to assemble in CKD condition,’ Ray said.
‘Please speak English, Ray,’ Waris reprimanded him.
‘I mean, “complete knock down” condition. I can also teach you guys how to dismantle it and then assemble it from CKD,’ Ray said.
‘Sky, we need at least three of these, one with each pair. To communicate among ourselves in case there is a change of plan.’ Waris looked at his friend, who was already rising from his chair with a sombre face.
‘You’ve got it, Waris,’ Sky said. ‘Just make sure you come back alive.’
The two men hugged briefly and Sky left, leaving the team to contemplate the enormity of the task ahead.
25
Apartment, New Delhi
Emperor Ashoka, dismayed by the destruction he had caused during the conquest of Kalinga, adopted Buddhism. Subsequently, he built numerous pillars bearing inscriptions detailing his new morality law. The Mansehra rock edicts in Pakistan are among the thirty-three inscriptions describing Buddhism and the concept of dharma.
‘UNESCO is asking for NGOs to volunteer for the preservation of ancient rock edicts in Pakistan. The Department of Archaeology and Museums in Pakistan proposed that the edicts be recognized as World Heritage Sites in 2004. It seems that proposal has gone through now,’ Brijesh said, pointing to the screen of his laptop.
‘If we can pull this off, we have a good chance of entering Pakistan. But remember that it’s close to Abottabad, where Bin Laden was hiding, and there is a military academy nearby,’ he added.
‘It shouldn’t be too tough.’ Laila said. ‘I’ve been working on IDs and covers for the two of you. You need to have a look at the UNESCO applicant forms though.’
‘Already have,’ Brijesh said, as he spun the laptop around to face Laila, who was preparing an omelette for herself. ‘Not too complex.’
Vikrant walked into the room, looking fresh after a hot shower.
‘I’ve filled out my form already,’ he said, as he pulled on a white vest.
Laila frowned at him. ‘I thought I asked you not to do any such thing, Vikrant. Not until we have visas for your fake passports and all the other paperwork.’
‘Nasiruddin Rafique.’ He looked back at her. ‘I know who I’m going to be. I’ve done my research and looked him up. He runs a small NGO in Dhaka, and there are no pictures of him on the net.’
‘You had to provide an email ID, didn’t you? His original is [email protected],’ she read from her laptop. ‘I hope you haven’t used that one.’
Vikrant sighed and lay down on the bed.
‘Grant me some intelligence, will you? I’ve used the same ID under the Hotmail domain name. UNESCO will send the mails to the ID I’ve provided.’
‘If you’re so certain about this,’ Laila said, ‘help Brijesh set up his as well. His name, according to the cover, is Mushfiqur Rehman Mirza. He’s your aide. The second in-charge. Nobody needs to talk to him.’
‘Well,’ Vikrant s
miled wryly, ‘that will be a nice change.’
Brijesh shrugged his shoulders. He pulled the laptop back towards himself, and typed something rapidly. Vikrant peeped over his shoulder and watched him fill out the UNESCO application form online. Laila began to eat her omelette, ignoring them.
‘What story do we go to them with exactly?’ Vikrant shot a quizzical glance at Laila, feigning ignorance to annoy her. ‘Can we go over it again?’
Laila rolled her eyes and assumed an authoritative tone.
‘I’m going to go over this from the top, guys. The two of you will pose as Bangladeshi archaeological volunteers who want to help preserve the Mansehra edicts. We – and by we, I mean you two – propose that with the help of our laser mapping technology, you will create three-dimensional models. The process will be cheap and will conserve the heritage sites of Mansehra. Of course, you have to sound as sincere as you can. That’s a hard task in itself.’
Brijesh smiled. ‘It sounds all right, but do we have the technology ready? In case they want a demo?’
‘Of course,’ she replied. ‘Ray is working on a presentation. The technology isn’t uncommon. You must insist that these edicts are under the constant threat of being destroyed by religious zealots. Don’t come across as too jingoistic, though. And yes, we have procured two Bangladeshi sim cards for you guys, be ready to take calls from UNESCO.
‘When will Ray be sending them?’
‘Sometime this evening,’ Laila replied. ‘The IDs will also be ready by then. All you need to do now is to wait for UNESCO to get in touch with you. It should be like clockwork from there.’
‘Clockwork from there,’ Vikrant mimicked her. He laughed, and Laila realized he had been teasing her all along. The A-Team was rallying nicely; at last, their spirits were up, now that the new mission was in place.
‘That’s rather mature,’ Laila said, pushing her plate aside. ‘Now let’s go check on Kang. He seems to be responding well to the medication.’
It was seven in the evening when Brijesh’s secure phone began to buzz. He squinted at the number and looked at Laila.
Mumbai Avengers Page 19