The Zero-Cost Mission/The Wily Agent

by Amar Bhushan

  At 5.00 p.m. on the dot, Sujal entered Reddy’s office for the meeting. To his pleasant surprise, Vijay was already there. They exchanged smiles. He quickly realized that Vijay was very much a part of the proposed plan and had probably drafted it.

  ‘Were you able to finish reading Vijay’s magnum opus?’ Reddy enquired, confirming Sujal’s suspicions regarding the author of the plan.

  ‘Yes, sir. I read the operations part thoroughly in which Vijay lays out the proposed steps to achieve the objective and explains how he is going to secure the footprints of the Agency,’ Sujal replied.

  ‘Is it possible to execute this operation?’ Reddy asked pointedly.

  ‘Theoretically, yes. A lot, however, will depend on who will supervise its execution, the kind of sources that will be deployed on the ground and whether headquarters will fund it without raising an eyebrow,’ Sujal said.

  ‘Vijay is of the view that only you can pull it off. His plan is to relocate you to Calcutta and entrust this operation to you,’ Reddy said.

  ‘He is an old friend, and his faith in me is flattering, but I have been in Hyderabad for only six months. My kids have just started a new term in school. My wife underwent a major surgery last month and is making a slow recovery,’ Sujal hedged.

  ‘I know the relocation will be hard on you. I will certainly bring your concerns to the Chief’s notice, but if he insists on handing over the operation only to you, I’m afraid you will have to move,’ Reddy said.

  After a moment’s pause, Sujal asked, ‘Sir, why this urgency to attack the Jamaat posts?’

  Reddy looked to Vijay to respond.

  ‘The fact of the matter is that we can no longer defer action. Any more dithering will make our security situation extremely vulnerable,’ Vijay stressed.

  ‘I see,’ Sujal mused, almost to himself.

  ‘How much time will you need to wrap things up in Hyderabad and move to Calcutta?’ Reddy enquired. ‘We will of course meet all your relocation expenses,’ he added.

  ‘A fortnight, sir. I can bring my wife and children later, after finding suitable accommodation and a good school for the kids,’ Sujal said. ‘However, I must have blanket approval to travel between Calcutta and Hyderabad whenever my wife needs me till such time as she moves.’

  For Reddy, it was strange to see a junior officer dictating terms without squirming. He, however, agreed to Sujal’s condition.

  ‘Sir, there is one more thing. I know Atul Kulkarni is currently heading the Calcutta office. But it will be difficult for me to work under him. I had the misfortune of serving under him for a year. I don’t want to revisit his pettiness, his shallow operational ideas, his nagging questioning over expenses and his vengeful attitude. In fact, I will spend more time in managing him than in working on the project. Why don’t you leave me out of it and let him run this operation under your direct supervision?’ Sujal asked.

  ‘We have already considered that option and rejected it. We cannot entrust such a sensitive responsibility to someone who has impractical ideas, can neither win nor run a source and who invariably annoys assets and loses them. Atul is good at planning grandiose operations but cannot execute them. He will simply ruin it. There is no room for anyone to make the slightest error of judgement in this plan,’ Vijay averred.

  ‘If he cannot be trusted to run such an operation, why don’t you transfer him elsewhere?’ Sujal suggested.

  Realizing that the conversation was going nowhere, Reddy intervened. ‘Sujal, the Chief has already approved your posting to Calcutta.’

  ‘So I don’t have a choice,’ said Sujal.

  ‘No, you don’t,’ Reddy responded with a smile. ‘But I am going to inform Atul that in addition to functioning as his deputy, you will be handling an operation independently under my direct supervision and you are not to be questioned about either the disbursement of funds or any travel undertaken by you to bordering areas or to headquarters in this connection.’

  ‘Sir, he is not the kind to accept this arrangement willingly. He may not protest officially or express his unhappiness openly, but he will try to ruin my career by providing negative feedback in my annual confidential reports. He has always been a silent assassin for those who refuse to be bulldozed by him,’ Sujal pointed out.

  ‘Don’t worry. I will take care of that,’ Reddy assured him.

  ‘Sir, I have one more request. Please send the service money for this operation separately to me by name,’ Sujal urged.

  ‘That’s a minor issue. You have ten days to read through the proposal thoroughly and clarify any doubts with Vijay. The Chief would like to discuss the plan with all of us before taking a final decision. Your transfer order, although approved on file, will be issued only if he clears the operation. Vijay will let you know the date and time of our meeting with the Chief. I imagine he will have several questions to ask you regarding the viability of the plan, how it will be executed in the field and by whom, and how you plan to disburse service money. Come prepared for a grilling,’ Reddy warned.

  ‘Sir, the only thing I need to know is the objective, which has been clearly outlined in the note. But I will only be able to work out the operating details after I select suitable volunteers for the job, identify the targets and obtain from my agents an accurate estimate of ground difficulties. The plan may have to undergo several mid-course corrections to make it effective. I am also not in a position at the moment to give an estimate of the amount of service money that will be needed. For that, I have to first talk to my field operatives to assess the degree of risk that each one will be exposed to during the plan’s execution. Sir, if you have entrusted this operation to me, allow me to handle it the way I see fit,’ Sujal requested.

  Reddy was impressed by Sujal’s audacity and clarity of mind. For a change, he was interacting with an officer who was sure of himself, held his ground firmly and had no qualms about questioning directives if he felt they would compromise a mission. He realized that he would be dealing with an officer who was not only demanding, but was also challenging to handle.

  ‘What if your plans fall short and you fail?’ Reddy asked.

  ‘Sir, that is a chance that you will have to take with me,’ Sujal replied calmly.

  ‘I have no quarrel on that score. Let’s see what the Chief has to say about your suggestions,’ Reddy said. He shook hands with Sujal, saying that he hoped to see him soon.

  After they left Reddy’s office, Sujal reproached Vijay for sucking him into a complicated operation.

  ‘But wouldn’t you like to get involved in such an operation?’ Vijay probed.

  ‘I would, but only if a Jeevnathan is there to stand by me. I don’t have a clue about Reddy’s leadership qualities or style, nor do I have an idea of the stuff that the Chief is made of. Since there are more chances of failing in such operations, my fear is that they might dump me halfway through and later accuse me of wasting crores and embarrassing them,’ Sujal opined.

  ‘Neither of them will let you down,’ Vijay assured him. ‘Reddy may not be able to guide you in conducting the day-to-day operations, but he will back you till the end. The Chief is also extremely supportive and encourages differing points of view,’ he confided.

  Somewhat reassured, Sujal bid Vijay farewell and left for the airport to catch the evening flight to Hyderabad.

  Later that night, Sujal shared what had transpired in Delhi with Arpita, his wife. He had been agonizing over whether it would be right for him to subject her to a relocation given her fragile health. He knew he had to warn her of the possibility and take into consideration her reaction before he took a final decision on Reddy’s offer.

  ‘You always think of your work,’ Arpita was quick to react.

  ‘I understand your feelings and I did express my reservations regarding undertaking this assignment, but Reddy wouldn’t listen,’ Sujal said.

  ‘I don’t grudge you, your passion for conducting intelligence operations. You know that I have always supported you in yo
ur work. I even sacrificed my dream of establishing myself as an accomplished Odissi dancer and accompanied you to Dhaka to serve as a housewife,’ she said.

  Sujal kept quiet, fondly holding her hand.

  ‘I never complained about that,’ she continued. ‘I thought it was my destiny. But think at least of our children’s future. If we keep moving, their education will suffer.’

  Sujal listened, mostly in sympathy.

  ‘I have yet to recover fully from my surgery, but that doesn’t seem to bother you. I know you will still go because you love your job more than anything else,’ she accused mildly.

  ‘That’s not true,’ Sujal interrupted.

  ‘If you have to move to Calcutta, I suggest you make arrangements to send us to Cuttack to live with my mother. With my brother’s help, I will try to get the children enrolled in a public school there,’ she stopped speaking, feeling tired.

  ‘You have been a great support in whatever little I have achieved in life,’ Sujal said fondly. ‘Unlike other officers in the Agency, I have discussed almost every source and operation with you because I deeply value your opinion as well as criticism. There is no question of my accepting this operation if it means that you will have to go to Cuttack and manage without me.’

  ‘I know you are a very loving husband. But look at my health. It is better that I spend some time with my mother to recuperate. Besides, I will feel terrible if you refuse the Chief’s offer because of me. You have always enjoyed taking up challenges and in this case the Chief has specially selected you to undertake an operation,’ she tried to reason half-heartedly.

  ‘I won’t get involved in anything that requires me to leave you to fend for yourself. The Chief can make a negative remark in my annual confidential report for refusing, but I am prepared for that. As it is, my record is littered with indifferent remarks. So one more won’t make any difference to my career,’ Sujal said.

  ‘I would like you to run operations that make you happy, but I am also worried about our safety. Do you remember how relieved I was when we finally left Dhaka at the end of your tenure? The General had threatened to kill all of us if you did not stop mobilizing the opposition against him. Fortunately, he did not carry out his threat. This time you are taking on Jamaat, which is deadlier, more brutal and determined to hit back. It doesn’t matter if we are in Calcutta or elsewhere. They will find us through their network of contacts and target us,’ Arpita said.

  ‘I told you I will not go to Calcutta and if Reddy insists, I will go on extended leave. Now, relax and go to sleep,’ Sujal reassured her.

  Over the next few days Arpita reflected on their discussion. While she was concerned about the impact the move would have on the children’s education, and genuinely worried about the danger the operation could expose the entire family to, she also knew that Sujal was excited by the opportunity. He thrived on running such operations. She knew what she had to do.

  ‘I know your heart lies in taking up this operation,’ she told Sujal over breakfast a few days later. ‘You must not get swayed either by my health issues or by my concerns regarding our safety,’ she insisted as Sujal tried to interrupt her. ‘Please call Vijay and tell him that you will accept the assignment. You can leave as soon as possible. I will stay back in Hyderabad for a couple of months. Once you find a house and a good school for the children, we will join you there. Besides, Calcutta is not very far from here and you can always rush back if there is an emergency.’

  ‘I can’t leave you behind to take care of yourself and deal with any post-operative problems. More than ever, you need my help now,’ he said, pouring coffee into her mug.

  ‘Don’t rush into a decision you may regret later. You have never worked under this Chief. Who knows, this operation may give you an opportunity to show him your worth as an operative, and bring a turnaround in your career,’ she argued.

  ‘I no longer care about my career. Besides, I hear that he is timid, tries to please everyone, from the brightest to the most useless, and is averse to violent operations. I doubt if Reddy has even discussed this proposal with him. Aulakh is currently on tour and is scheduled to return next week. I am to go to Delhi to discuss the feasibility of the operation with him when he’s back in the office. For all you know, he may scrap the project after I highlight the risks involved in undertaking it,’ he opined.

  ‘Then let’s wait and hear what he has to say before taking any decision,’ Arpita counselled.

  Sujal’s meeting with the Chief turned out to be brief but positive. Reddy, Vijay and his combative colleague from Hyderabad met the Chief in the mini-operations room adjoining the Chief’s office. As soon as they were all seated around the oval table, the Chief got down to business.

  ‘Reddy, have Vijay and you briefed Sujal on the plan?’ he enquired.

  ‘Yes, sir. He agrees with the concept but not with our suggestions on how to execute it. He insists on conducting it on his own terms, which he will spell out in due course after you clear the proposal in principle,’ Reddy said.

  ‘May I know what your terms and conditions are?’ the Chief asked, looking at Sujal.

  ‘Sir, I ask for three assurances. First, no one will waver and scrap the operation or curtail once it has commenced. Second, if you foresee any difficulties in making available the required resources, I should be informed before the start of the operation. And lastly, if I fail to deliver, I shall not be subjected to any departmental scrutiny.’

  ‘Are you suggesting that none of us will have any role in this except for making the required resources available to you?’

  ‘Yes, sir.’ There was complete silence for a few seconds.

  ‘That’s an audacious self-belief. Nevertheless, I am willing to take a chance on you and this operation for Vijay’s sake. He has enormous confidence in your operational ability,’ the Chief said. ‘You can go ahead, but do not misuse my blanket authority to ride roughshod over your colleagues or execute the plan recklessly. You will report only to Reddy, should you need any assistance. I need not stress how important it is for you to remain extremely discreet for the duration of this operation. In fact, it’s probably best if you are less visible at headquarters.’

  Sujal found it strange that the Chief was approving the operation not because of any compelling reason to act against Jamaat but because of his fondness for Vijay.

  ‘Sir, can I say something on the feasibility of this operation?’ Sujal asked after some hesitation.

  ‘You can discuss that later with Reddy and Vijay. If you have the slightest doubt about its workability at any stage, just walk out of it,’ the Chief advised.

  ‘Sir, I am reasonably confident of pulling it off. The only thing that concerns me is Atul’s reaction when he sees me sidestep him repeatedly. He has a history of ruining operations out of jealousy,’ Sujal pointed out.

  The Chief felt awkward listening to a junior officer speaking ill of his senior and hence chose not to respond to the insinuation. Instead, he enquired about his wife’s health.

  ‘She is better now, but it may take a few more months for her to recover fully,’ Sujal said.

  ‘Give her my regards,’ the Chief said and thanked Vijay and Sujal, signalling that they could leave. However, he requested Reddy to stay back.

  ‘I don’t know if Vijay has made the right choice in assigning the operation to this officer,’ the Chief confided. ‘I find him presumptuous and arrogant.’

  ‘I don’t know much about him, but Vijay swears by his ability. He showed me the files of a few operations in which Sujal was involved. It is remarkable how he handled them singlehandedly. What struck me is his ability to adapt and improvise his modus operandi in a changing situation and his capacity to remain unfazed in the midst of reverses,’ Reddy said.

  ‘Did he tell you which aspects of the plan he disagrees with and why?’

  ‘No, but he has promised to come back with his comments on Vijay’s proposal by tomorrow evening.’

  ‘How much servi
ce money does he expect us to provide?’

  ‘He refused to hazard a guess, but on my insistence, he said that it could be in the range of rupees 5 to 7 crore,’ Reddy said.

  ‘What is he talking about? Is he going to bomb the whole of Bangladesh that he needs so much money? He may be an excellent operator but don’t concede to everything that he asks for. Also, keep a close watch over his handling of service money and make sure he doesn’t defy any rules of business while running the operation,’ the Chief advised.

  ‘From the little that I know of him, I don’t think he will embarrass us,’ Reddy said. ‘My sense is that he will go boldly after the target as long as he has our backing. He often credits Jeevnathan for shaping him into what he is today. I think he expects us to take a cue from his mentor who, he says, trusts his officers blindly and provides service money without asking any questions.’

  ‘Now I know where he gets this streak of talking defiantly and dictating terms,’ the Chief remarked.

  Reddy left as the OSD entered the room to inform the Chief that his next meeting was about to start.

  After their meeting with the Chief, Sujal reflected on the latter’s reactions as he sat waiting for Vijay to finish with work before they headed out for lunch. He thought Aulakh was decisive and appreciated his openness in listening to a junior officer’s opinions and concerns. But he also felt that he was overly concerned with the fear of exposure and its chain reaction, which meant that he might pull out if the operation ever ran into problems. For a moment, he toyed with the idea of raising his estimation of the logistical requirements to such an extent that Reddy would find it impossible to meet them, thus forcing him to either scrap the mission or replace him. But that would be mean, he knew. Moreover, it would rob him of the opportunity to re-establish contact with his old friends in Dhaka. A thought suddenly occurred to him. Vijay had told him that the Chief was worried about the fallout from the violence the operation could entail. So why not try something different to achieve the objective without spilling a drop of blood? Struck by a bizarre idea, he reached for the phone and dialled a number. A lady finally answered after it rang for a while.