Close ‘terror’ call off Gujarat coast

Ajay Banerjee

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Tribune News Service

New Delhi, January 2

A suspicious Pakistani fishing vessel, believed to be loaded with explosives, blew up and sank off the coast of Gujarat after being challenged and intercepted by the Indian Coast Guard, officials said on Friday.

The boat — which had set off from ‘Keti Bandar’, a small port near Karachi, on the eve of New Year — turned into a ball of fire and sank after its occupants, believe to be four in number, set it ablaze early Thursday. 

“The 15-metre-long Pakistani boat, suspected to be carrying explosives, sunk in the wee hours on January 1 after its crew set the boat afire,’ said Ministry of Defence (MoD) spokesperson Sitanshu Kar.

The dramatic incident —  a reminder of the manner in which 10 Pakistani terrorists sneaked into Mumbai in 2008 — occurred 365 km (197 nautical miles) south west off Porbandar. 

Darkness and bad weather prevented the Coast Guard from apprehending any of the crew as the crew sank in the Arabian Sea along with the vessel. Indian intelligence agencies received a tip-off on December 31 about the boat sailing out and heading for an ‘illicit transaction’ in the Arabian Sea. A Dornier surveillance plane of the Coast Guard was dispatched and it identified the boat sailing towards India. KR Nautiyal, Deputy Director General (Operations & Coastal Security) of the Coast Guard, said: "We diverted our surface vessel to intercept the suspicious entity”.

The Coast Guard ship intercepted the unlit boat around midnight on December 31.  The Coast Guard ship warned the fishing boat to stop for further investigation of the crew and cargo. However, the boat increased its speed and tried to escape away from the Indian side of maritime boundary. The hot pursuit continued for nearly one hour and the Coast Guard ship managed to stop the fishing boat after firing warning shots.

“Four persons were seen on the boat who disregarded all warnings by the Coast Guard ship to stop and cooperate with investigation. They later hid in the lower deck of the boat and set it on fire, which resulted in an explosion and major fire following which the boat sank along with its occupants,” said the MoD spokesperson. 

Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar complimented the Coast Guard “for intercepting the rogue vessel off the coast of Gujarat, in a timely and precise manner, thereby, averting a possible terror strike”. 

Earlier, Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh accused Pakistan of trying to push terrorists into Jammu and Kashmir and giving cover to such attempts by continuous firing along the border.

With US President Barrack Obama slated to visit India for the Republic Day function, Indian agencies suspect  that Pak-based terrorist groups were planning to carry out “spectacular attacks”. 

How terror boat was intercepted

Intelligence agencies intercept two Pak-based persons talking about delivering ‘expensive cargo’ to India.

After a specific input that a 15-metre boat has sailed out of Keti Bandar (port) near Karachi for India, Coast Guard dispatches Dornier aircraft for investigation

Dec 31: Around noon, the aircraft spots the “suspicious boat” around 365 km off Porbandar in Gujarat.

Coast Guard ship ‘Rajrattan’ is asked to sail to the spot. 

2:30 pm: A back-up plane keeps track of the boat

5 pm: Another Dornier flies to track the Pakistani boat

1 am: The Coast Guard patrol vessel reaches the spot and sights an unlit boat. Occupants of the boat are asked to stop and warning shots are fired. The boat, however, tries to speed away. The vessel is chased in high seas for one hour and is finally stopped by the Coast Guard. 

3.30 am: Four persons are seen on the boat, who quickly hide themselves in the lower deck compartment and set the boat afire, which results in a major explosion. The boat sinks on the spot