12 June, 2009

26/11 could not have happened sans local support: slain NSG commando’s father



Times of India, 12th June, 2009

The kin of security personnel killed in Mumbai terror strikes on Friday suspected that gunmen who carried out the attacks could have had local support.

K Unnikrishnan, father of slain NSG commando Sandeep Unnikrishnan, and Kavita Karkare, wife of slain ATS chief Hemant Karkare, said there might have "sleeper groups" of terrorist oufits in the city.

"I can't believe that only ten people came and did so much damage in a city like Mumbai. There must have been support for them and there are sleeper groups which might have helped them," Unnikrishnan said at a function organised by Sahara India.

Kavita Karkare also criticised the security establishment for its shortcomings and said it was likely that there was an element of local support.

"There are many people supporting them (terrorists) and we should bring about a change," she said.

Karkare blamed the political establishment, state government, Intelligence machinery and Coast Guard for "lapses" which led to the attacks in which over 180 people were killed.

Sahara India pledged financial support to the next of kin of the 18 police and security forces personnel who were killed while taking on the terrorists in the city on November 26.

The wife of encounter specialist Vijay Salaskar, Smita, rued that society had already "forgotten" the lessons from the terror strikes.

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