New Delhi, January 01: Pressure from the government and hysteria back home by relatives of passengers prevented negotiators to force the hijackers of an Indian Airlines plane to scale down their demand to release just one terrorist, says A K Doval, India’s Chief negotiator.
Ten years after the traumatic passengers were released after a costly exchange of three dreaded terrorists on New Year eve, Doval, a former IB chief, says demands may have been reduced to release of just one terrorist if negotiators had got some more time.
Pressure was building from the government to quickly secure the release of passengers and finish the task before the clock struck midnight heralding the new millennium, he said.
“That was something that was adding pressure on us ki ab app key paas 12 ghante bache hain (you have 12 hours left)… the pressure was from the people. The pressure from the people was on the government, the pressure from the government would be transmitted to the negotiators and they were telling the people are getting restless,” 64-year-old Doval told a news agency here.
The intelligence agencies negotiated with the terrorists for seven days under tremendous domestic pressure to secure the release of passengers.
The hijack crisis ended after three dreaded terrorists –Maulana Masood Azhar, who later founded Jaish-e-Mohammed, Mushtaq Ahmed Zargar and Ahmed Omar Saeed Sheikh–were released in exchange for the lives of 149 passengers and a 15-member crew of the plane.
Many of the terror attacks in the country including the 2001 Parliament strike have been linked to the three freed terrorists.
“If the government was not under pressure, they would have said boys take your time, you are doing a good job…If you want, at your judgement close it, not at our judgement. I am not telling that we could have succeeded but may be we have brought it to two, it could have become one (terrorist) there was a possibility,” Doval said.
He recalled the episode as an “opportunity lost” for India. “Opportunity lost…from my personal angle as an operational man, I think an opportunity lost…. it’s not only at Kandahar but right from the very beginning from Nepal to this thing,” he said.
The government was constantly asking us to do something and secure the release of the weary passengers, he said.
“New millennium is starting. What are you fellows doing? ap log kuch kariye (do something). Isko jitne mein hota hai kariye. Passengers ko wapas laeiye (bring back passengers),” said Doval recalling a conversation with authorities in Delhi.
-Agencis