by Sree Iyer
Maida asked, “What am I supposed to do?”
“It’s for you to decide.”
“But I have done nothing wrong.”
“Really? What about that LEPE machine scam? What of the dozen clearances that the Foreign Investment Promotion Board gave for investments? Clearances that should have first come to the cabinet for approval. Plus, the matter of your son who fully exploited your position to strike all kinds of deals. Are you seriously suggesting that you were unaware of this open secret?”
“Nothing has been proved.”
“Not until now. But that will change, if this government wants. If Hasmukh wants.”
“Is this a threat?”
“Consider it a friendly warning.”
“Okay. I’m suitably warned. Thanks.”
PP next called Dalda and delivered a similar message. He had never spoken to Rico before, so he dialed a senior Freedom Party leader and personal friend, instead, and asked him to advise Rico to stay alert. PP didn’t feel any remorse over his action. He was, after all, standing by his friends. Both Maida and Dalda (when in Delhi) would drop by at his house at least once a month for drinks and gossip. They made for odd company — sworn rivals in public but thick as ever behind closed doors.
It was difficult for anyone to fault PP on this count. After all, political differences ought not to impact personal friendships. But what if a minister begins to forewarn his friends, using official information that cannot be shared? There is a red line that cannot be breached, but it had been.
Folks in the Intelligence Bureau who overheard the conversations, thanks to a technology crudely called phone-tapping, were in no doubt that the Finance Minister had committed an act of grave impropriety. A report would land on the Prime Minister’s desk in a week’s time, once the taped conversations were forensically tested at the Central Forensic Science Laboratory in Hyderabad.
CHAPTER 36.
The Chase
Javed needed to leave India quickly. As he fled from the Prime Minister’s cavalcade, the crowds were thinning and dispersing. Kerala’s main artery, the NH-66, ran parallel to the Arabian Sea for the most part and he wanted to get on the highway. Even as he ran, he kept looking for a reasonably used but sturdy vehicle to escape in and spotted a Tata Indica. No one was around.
He quickly got in, hot-wired the car by removing the plastic around the steering column, stripped the insulation from the battery wires and started the car. He was off in a couple of minutes. The Indica is a small car with easy maneuverability and before long he was on the NH-66, blending in with the traffic. In a couple of hours, he had crossed into Malappuram district and reached another safe house, owned by a supporter of Haji Pir Mohammad. Before connecting with him, Javed abandoned the Indica in a mangrove forest across a dirt road stretch and walked back to the highway towards the safe house.
Karan was notified by the police control room that a Tata Indica was missing from the outskirts of Kochi. The license number along with the description was put out, but by the time it was found, abandoned amidst the mangroves in Malappuram district, four hours had passed. Javed had given them the slip once again. But Karan knew he was closing in. He also knew that Javed’s options were narrowing down and he would be in Malappuram district, where Haji Pir Mohammad still wielded some influence.
The safe house was situated near the town of Kuttippuram, on the banks of the Bharatapuzha river (River of Bharata.) The ISI handler was told that he would be able to leave quietly in the night and navigate the river all the way to the Arabian Sea and then switch to a speed boat that would take him to Karachi. The plan looked good on paper, but not when the intelligence and police agencies were hot on his trail. They would first seal the obvious sea route. He began surfing channels on TV to see if there was news of the assassination attempt.
From the spot the stolen car was recovered, Karan drew a circle and knew that Javed was most likely holed up along the Bharatapuzha river. He was confident of cutting off Javed’s access to the Arabian Sea as Bharatapuzha was shallow and passage on a boat would be tricky, what with the water flow having reduced considerably. He had ensured that the attempt on the Prime Minister’s life was kept out of the media, a move made to unsettle Javed and play with his mind. He knew Javed would be scouring the television for news and wanted to ensure that he would only go in the direction that Karan wanted him to.
The meteorological office of Kochi had issued a weather advisory that a fast-moving low-pressure system was moving in from the Arabian Sea. All fishing boats along the Arabian Sea should stay ashore for the next 48 hours. It was picked up by television channels and had left many a fisherman, who looked up at the clear skies, wondering about the forecast. But thanks to the advisory, the waterway along the river was desolate except for the odd cruise boat.
Karan’s team set up camp at Hotel Malabar, along the coast of the river so they could conduct surveillance using drones and stay connected with the coast guard, who was monitoring traffic at the estuary of the river.
Javed realised that the easy escape route had been cut off. The other option was to move along NH-66 and try and get back to the coast a bit higher. But Karan had foreseen that possibility as well and cast a dragnet around Kuttippuram. All access roads into and out of the city were cut off. He drilled in fear of the law (and that of god too) in the local police, extracting details of all Haji Pir Mohammad’s supporters in the area. He then shortlisted those who had residences on the riverbank or close to it. Only one house stood out. Karan had located Javed’s hideout.
Javed saw the weather bulletin and knew that it was a ruse to keep him hemmed in. He also realised that Indian agencies had cut off all his escape routes. Since he had to leave Kochi in a hurry, he was down to his pistol, hunting knife and a round of ammunition. Chances of him giving the slip this time were bleak. Either die or be captured. The second option was more disastrous. He knew too much and could jeopardise the entire spy network of the ISI in India, Nepal and Bangladesh.
He was approximately 20 kilometres away from the sea and if he could somehow hike to the coast, maybe he could wait it out for a ride back home. He would stay put till the night and use his GPS tracker to make the attempt. He couldn’t be holed up for long either.
Karan had instructed for infra-red binoculars to be trained at the safe house. As soon as the group leader saw Javed step out, he used his megaphone and asked the ISI man to freeze and get down on his knees. Javed tried to whip out his pistol to shoot but the sniper was too quick for him. Javed was shot in the right knee and fell down, clutching his leg in pain. The commando team swooped in and overcame Javed, whisking him away in their jeep. The shattered knee would trouble Javed for the rest of his life, especially on cold, wet nights, but that was not Karan’s worry. The man would live to spill his deadly secrets.
Karan and his team returned to Delhi, where Javed was put to interrogation for four days in a row, with hardly a couple of hours’ break. He was a tough man to crack psychologically. Different members of Karan’s team took turns to question him. But in the end, Karan had all the details related to the assassination bid. Javed also gave the name of the ISI point man, Pervez Pasha in Rawalpindi who had assigned him the task. He confirmed the plot of using Ricin and the operations at SRL, as well as his connections with Pir Mohammad.
But there was more coming. Javed had information about the LEPE sale in the Amazon jungles. Although he was not directly linked with the operations there, by virtue of being in India, he had been asked to keep track of the developments. He was also familiar with the ISI man who had contacted Deepak Masani at the Rio airport. This was all a bonus for Karan and his men who managed to extract all related details. While Deepak had been helpful when contacted by the IB, Karan needed to be certain that the IRS official would speak in a court of law when summoned as a witness.
When pressed further, including a (fake) promise of reduced sentence if he cooperated, Javed said he had a picture of the ISI agent meeting Deepak at
the airport.
“But how did you get it?” Karan asked.
Javed explained that his Rawalpindi boss had mailed the picture to him so that he could keep tabs on Deepak. He fished out the photograph from his rucksack and handed it over to Karan. It was grainy but recognisable. The IB official could use it to arm-twist Deepak if that was needed.
But Deepak had every intention of cooperating. What he had not told Karan was that he had taped his conversation with Maida during their meeting. He normally did not resort to such surreptitious methods, but when the then Finance Minister had called him over, he did get suspicious. It was not always that the Finance Minister directly dealt with a middle-level officer. He had switched on the tape before entering Maida’s office when he had to hand over the sealed envelope. He had thankfully not been frisked at the security entrance before being ushered in. If Maida were to deny knowing anything about this, the taped conversation would be useful.
CHAPTER 37.
The Painful Betrayal
Prime Minister Jadeja had a round of discussions with the chiefs of the National Investigation Agency, Central Bureau of Investigation and the Intelligence Bureau. He called them for a joint meeting. Also present was an ‘outsider.’
Govindan Ramaswamy, the maverick economist and self-taught lawyer who had taken on the high and mighty in the previous regime, held a composed smile. The three chiefs were surprised to see him. Although they were aware of his deep intellect and grasp of complex issues (not to mention his proximity with the Prime Minister), they had not imagined he would be asked to attend a sensitive meeting such as this one. But Govindan soon floored them with his humility, expressing gratitude to the Prime Minister for the honour, and was sure that he would learn a great deal simply by hearing these distinguished gentlemen speak. That he too had much to contribute, was something he preferred to not reveal just yet.
Each of the chiefs then proceeded to make an initial presentation of the progress they had made so far. Govindan listened carefully, remaining silent but taking copious notes. Forty-five minutes into the meeting, it was clear to the Prime Minister that they had enough material to take decisive action against the heavyweights of the previous regime and its alliance leaders. He had noticed Govindan’s busy fingers with amusement. Hasmukh turned to the agency heads and bluntly asked them about the reasons for delay in action. He expected clear answers.
Mike of the Intelligence Bureau was the first to speak. He detailed the painstaking efforts the bureau had made over several months in gathering information from across the country on the counterfeit currency network, the drugs trade and Love Jihad. Mike also drew links with powerful people including Dalda and Maida. He said the information had been passed on to the relevant probe agencies and added that while interrogations had been conducted along with a few arrests made as well, both Maida and Dalda had so far escaped the dragnet. This was primarily due to lack of cooperation from certain ministries, mostly during the Freedom Party’s rule but also in the current dispensation. Nobody was in doubt that Mike was referring to the Finance Ministry.
The National Investigation Agency head was the next to present his case. He listed the probes his organisation had conducted. He was emphatic that Dalda was neck deep into counterfeit currency and drug trade, while Maida appeared to have played a dubious role in the fake notes business. He said that the information gathered so far by his people, both on the ground and from those interrogated, spoke of a well-oiled machinery patronised by some really big names. He warned that if conclusive action was delayed any further, it would certainly have grave consequences for the nation’s security.
The CBI Director limited much of his presentation to the inquiries his teams had made in the questionable Foreign Investment Promotion Board clearances given when Maida was the Finance Minister, and the LEPE issue. He spoke of the material that the Intelligence Bureau had passed along regarding the surreptitious purchase of the second-hand machine from the grey market and the plans to convert it into a ‘new’ one. He had the Indian Revenue Service officer Deepak Masani’s statement from the IB.
The CBI had made further inquiries and was eventually able to confirm that the machine had served two main purposes. One: Make tidy profits for Maida and a few others. Two: Churn out fake currency, which then made its way to the underground networks run by powerful people. The second, the director pointed out, supplemented the counterfeit notes being pumped into the country’s financial system by Pakistan’s ISI.
After the presentations were done, the Prime Minister asked, “Everything considered, would you gentlemen say that there is sufficient prima facie evidence to take the former Finance Minister and Dalpat Dalvi into custody?” The answer, in unison, was yes. The Prime Minister then cautioned that any ill-considered move would boomerang not just on the credibility of the agencies but the government too.
“We understand that, Sir, but any further delay is not advisable”, Mike answered. The Prime Minister looked towards Govindan, whose flying fingers had come to a halt.
Govindan referred to his notes, illegible to all else, and made three immediate observations. One: “How did Javed Bhatti, who spoke no Malayalam, not just converse with the house owner in Kochi but even persuade him on the deal to rent the house? The owner did not speak English or Hindi. Was there a local accomplice?”
His second point was, “Why had the agencies gone slow in investigating the cases of land grabbing involving Rico, even after the government had changed at the centre?”
“Thirdly, why was nothing done about property deals that Dipika Sharma had engaged in regarding the buildings, which a now defunct newspaper owned?”
The agency heads were taken aback, while the Prime Minister looked enquiringly at him. None of the three issues had come up for discussion. Govindan explained that all these incidents had connections with money laundering or Love Jihad or counterfeit currency rackets, and of course, the spread of terrorism.
At the very least, the last two issues he had raised pointed to grave corruption in public space. He suggested that both the CBI and the Enforcement Directorate should have been looking more deeply into the cases. Finally, he added that the lack of progress had been mostly due to the laxity of the Finance Ministry. The Income Tax Department, for instance, was also involved in Dipika’s property deals, and it had been unable to make much progress because it came under the ministry’s purview.
The Prime Minister remained silent for a couple of minutes, turning over the information in his head. “Go ahead with your respective action plans. If you think the custody of certain persons is essential, then do it. You really never needed my clearance for that. You are free to take whatever steps needed to proceed, within the purview of law, of course.”
The meeting had ended. As the agency heads trooped out, Hasmukh asked Mike and Govindan to stay back. “You have something more to tell, Mike? I had received a request that you wished to speak to me in private.”
“That’s correct, Sir,” Mike answered, glancing at Govindan.
“Please go ahead. You may speak freely in his presence.”
“There is not much to say. Please see this.” He placed a folder on the desk. Hasmukh began to study it, while both Govindan and Mike excused themselves and went out to confabulate. They were called in only ten minutes later. The Prime Minister looked shaken. Govindan also saw pain in his eyes. What information had Mike given him in that file, he wondered.
The folder contained transcripts of telephonic conversations that PP had had with leaders of the Freedom Party, forewarning them about the government crackdown. Despite several cautions from the likes of Govindan, Hasmukh had maintained a soft corner for PP. He could not discount the fact that PP had stood by him in times of crises when he was Chief Minister. He had, of course, come to realise that the war on corruption had been moving at snail’s pace thanks to PP’s ‘loyalty’ towards his friends on the other side of the fence. That was why he had made it clear in his last meeting with the Finance M
inister that he expected action. Looking down at the file, he said to himself that this was too grave to be pardoned.
“I suppose you have the original audio tape, duly cleared by the forensics for veracity?”
“Yes, Sir, in my officer locker,” Mike said.
“Please change the safe’s code the first thing tomorrow.”
“Will do.”
Mike left and as Govindan was about to leave too, the Prime Minister’s asked him to stay. “Ramaswamy ji, what should I do?”
Ramaswamy had never before seen the Prime Minister in a bind. Hasmukh Jadeja was known for his clear mind and decisive action. Perhaps the question was a rhetorical one. The Prime Minister actually knew what he had to do but was expressing his anguish. A rarity indeed. Govindan had warned the Prime Minister about PP on a few occasions in the past. But today, even as he felt satisfied that PP would finally be brought to book, he felt sad for the Prime Minister. The man would have to deal with a betrayal that turned out to be as personal as it was professional.
After everyone left, Hasmukh took a moment to himself. He couldn’t help but recollect several moments from the fond friendship that he’d shared with Prafulla Prakash. It was like being let down by a brother. A few deep breaths settled him down.
The crackdown happened a week later. Maida and Dalda were arrested by the CBI, brought to the court and remanded to judicial custody for 14 days. Meanwhile, both the National Investigation Agency and the Enforcement Directorate moved the courts for the custody of the two accused. Any chance of quick bail at this time was bleak. Eventually, both spent nearly two months in Tihar jail before being granted bail. Their public image lay in tatters. A handful of their supporters still insisted on this being political vendetta, but not many were buying those stories.